Current:Home > MyWhat role will Zach Ertz play for the Lions? Highlights, stats of TE's 11-year career-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
What role will Zach Ertz play for the Lions? Highlights, stats of TE's 11-year career
View Date:2024-12-23 19:08:28
Eleven-year NFL veteran and tight end Zach Ertz has signed with a new team.
The Detroit Lions signed Ertz to their practice squad on Monday, and he could be elevated to the active roster before the NFC championship game.
The former Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles tight end injured his quad in Week 7 of the regular season and requested a release from the team in late November. Ertz had been a free agent since then.
Detroit's decision to sign him comes after backup tight end Brock Wright broke his forearm during the Lions' divisional round win over the Buccaneers. Behind Wright on the current depth chart is Anthony Firkser, who played just two offensive snaps all season.
Now, on his third team in three years, the 33-year-old Ertz won't displace star rookie tight end Sam LaPorta as the starter. Instead, he will likely fill in as a backup and add a more reliable, veteran presence with real playoff (and Super Bowl) experience to the Lions' offense.
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
NFL playoffs:San Francisco 49ers need to fix their mistakes. Fast.
Zach Ertz career history
Prior to his 28-game stint with the Cardinals, Ertz played nine years for the Philadelphia Eagles, where he earned three straight Pro Bowl nods from 2017-2019 and won a Super Bowl after the 2017 season.
Over the course of his first seven seasons in the NFL, the Stanford product grew into one of the league's most prominent tight ends. During his three-season run of Pro Bowl nods, he tallied 2,903 yards on 278 catches (10.4 average yards per catch) with 22 touchdowns.
To this day, Ertz holds the NFL record for single-season receptions by a tight end with the 116 catches he had in 2018. He's also remained the Eagles' franchise leader for receptions in a single game, with 15 in a 2014 game. When Philadelphia won Super Bowl 52, it was in part thanks to a heroic touchdown dive from Ertz in the game's final minutes.
The Eagles traded Ertz to the Cardinals in 2021, and he quickly became a top target for Arizona, accumulating 81 of them with 56 catches, 574 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games down the stretch. He finished the season with the Cardinals' third-highest receiving yards total.
Though he started all 28 games he played for Arizona, injuries held him back from better production over the last two years. Ertz had a season-ending knee injury in Week 10 of 2022 and had the aforementioned quad injury that shut him down earlier this season. As second-year tight end Trey McBride blossomed into a solid pass-catcher in Ertz's absence this year, the writing was on the wall.
Zach Ertz career highlights
At his peak, Ertz was one of the NFL's most dominating tight ends. Even as he's aged, he's proven to be a reliable target in the red zone and a guy that won't go down easily against would-be tacklers.
veryGood! (6256)
Related
- More than 150 pronghorns hit, killed on Colorado roads as animals sought shelter from snow
- Where is 'College GameDay' for Week 5? Location, what to know for ESPN show
- 2 hurt in explosion at Southern California courthouse and 1 person of interest detained
- The Best SKIMS Drops This Month: A Bra That's Better Than A Boob Job, Cozy Sets & More
- AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1 as Big Ten grabs 4 of top 5 spots; Georgia, Miami out of top 10
- Former Detroit-area mayor pleads guilty in scheme to cash in on land deal
- Funds are cutting aid for women seeking abortions as costs rise
- Kentucky sheriff charged with fatally shooting a judge pleads not guilty in first court appearance
- School workers accused of giving special needs student with digestive issue hot Takis, other abuse
- DWTS’ Brooks Nader and Gleb Savchenko Detail “Chemistry” After Addressing Romance Rumors
Ranking
- New wildfires burn in US Northeast while bigger blazes rage out West
- First US high school with an all-basketball curriculum names court after Knicks’ Julius Randle
- Resentencing for Lee Malvo postponed in Maryland after Virginia says he can’t attend in person
- Women’s only track meet in NYC features Olympic champs, musicians and lucrative prize money
- Who will be in the top 12? Our College Football Playoff ranking projection
- Will Young Voters’ Initial Excitement for Harris Build Enough Momentum to Get Them to the Polls?
- Nashville district attorney secretly recorded defense lawyers and other office visitors, probe finds
- Former Houston officer convicted of murder in deaths of couple during drug raid
Recommendation
-
Advocates Expect Maryland to Drive Climate Action When Trump Returns to Washington
-
Travis James Mullis executed in Texas for murder of his 3-month-old son Alijah: 'I'm ready'
-
Jack Schlossberg Reveals His Family's Reaction to His Crazy Social Media Videos
-
NFL rookie rankings: Jayden Daniels or Malik Nabers for No. 1 of early 2024 breakdown?
-
Should Georgia bench Carson Beck with CFP at stake against Tennessee? That's not happening
-
Court upholds finding that Montana clinic submitted false asbestos claims
-
Takeaways from an AP and Texas Tribune report on 24 hours along the US-Mexico border
-
Mel Gibson Makes Rare Public Appearance With His Kids Lucia and Lars