Getty Bills TE Tommy Sweeney has been mentioned in trade talks for Zach Ertz.
As the first week of spring OTAs wraps up in South Philadelphia, there is a new trade rumor involving Zach Ertz. Well, this one is couched more like a prediction than anything else.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell — a respected, veteran NFL writer — proposed the Philadelphia Eagles send their three-time Pro Bowler to the Buffalo Bills. They would receive s 2022 seventh-round pick and tight end Tommy Sweeney in exchange for Ertz. He rules out Indianapolis as a landing spot for the disgruntled Eagles tight end due to the fact the Colts are loaded at the position.
The team has Jack Doyle, Mo Alie-Cox, Kylen Granson, Noah Togiai. Alie-Cox signed a restricted tender worth $3.38 million while Granson was chosen in the fourth-round of this year’s draft. Barnwell wrote:
Naturally, with coach Frank Reich and QB Carson Wentz in Indianapolis, the Colts have been popularly linked with Ertz. They already have plenty of tight ends, though, and there’s another team I think makes more sense. Bills general manager Brandon Beane proclaimed at the beginning of the offseason that his team needed to upgrade on Dawson Knox at tight end, but the only move Buffalo has made at the position is signing Jacob Hollister to a one-year deal.
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Sweeney Hit Injured Reserve in Week 7
Sweeney’s name is an intersting one to be thrown in a trade package. The 25-year-old is a former seventh-round pick (2019) who was shut down after Week 10 last year due to a heart condition. ESPN reported that Sweeney suffers from myocarditis, a disease marked by the inflammation of the heart muscle.
The Boston College product also suffered a foot injury to start his 2020 campaign, then hit the Reserve/COVID-19 list in Week 7 because he was in close contact to a teammate who tested positive. He made eight receptions for 114 yards and four first downs in 2019. He measures 6-foot-5 and 280 pounds. Here’s a scouting report (via NFL.com):
Reliable combination tight end with the competitiveness to handle the work asked from his position at Boston College. He’ll need to get bigger and stronger for run-blocking duties as an NFL “Y” tight end, but he does have the ball skills to offer himself up as a reliable underneath option from time to time. Sweeney’s lackluster play speed and athletic traits could limit his draft stock, but he should find a job as late-round, backup tight end.
Carson Wentz Talks About His Role
Carson Wentz was painted as a diva during his final days in Philadelphia, a player not willing to take tough criticism or hard coaching. He was also accused of not always connecting with his teammates, or not going the extra mile to make the effort. Many analysts feel Wentz needed to set the tone immediately in Indianapolis and command the locker room. The former Eagles quarterback doesn’t see it that way, though.
“I think that’s overblown,” Wentz said, via NFL.com. “For one, Frank really sets the tone. Coach Reich sets the tone. There’s a lot of great leadership, that’s what I’ve already seen, both sides of the ball. And so for me, it’s not about making it my team by any means.
“It’s, how do I fit in? How do I plug in and how do we make tweaks and nuances within the offense and different things and really just be a family and make it really a team that we’re all in this thing together? That’s been fun to see, just over this two weeks, how we all kind of fit together and different personalities, different backgrounds, different pieces all come together out there.”
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