Zach Ertz really isn’t a good fit for the Buffalo Bills

Despite the love and affection that the Buffalo Bills fans all share for Dawson Knox, the tight end position remains one of the biggest holes on the current roster.

After not picking a tight end in the NFL Draft, Bills fans have turned their attention to free agency or a trade as a source for a new tight end. With the Philadelphia Eagles openly saying that their former pro bowl tight end Zach Ertz is available via trade, it has seemed like a no-brainer for the Bills, and a marriage between the two has been speculated all offseason.

With the Bills restructuring Stefon Diggs’ contract this morning and clearing almost 8 million in cap space, the Ertz rumors have picked up once again. However, an Ertz and Bills marriage might not be the slam dunk that many are saying it is.

Josh Allen only targeted tight ends last year on 62 of his 572 throws. This could be chalked up to the weakness of the position in Buffalo; but if you go back to Allen’s last season at Wyoming, he only completed 32 passes to tight ends. This could create a little bit of a problem as Ertz’s overall effectiveness comes from being a target monster. For his career in Philly, Ertz has averaged over 10 targets per game.

Buffalo Bills pass distribution with Zach Ertz

It seems like it would be troubling to find targets for Ertz, as Diggs and Cole Beasley are already locked in for over 100 targets each (Assuming that they stay healthy). Speaking of the Bills two stud receivers, they mostly operate in the short to the intermediate area and do most of their work in the middle of the field- the same part of the field where Ertz does most of his damage.

Ertz could be a fun chess piece, but the Bills would be better off going after a tight end who is more of a vertical threat and doesn’t rely on such a high target share in order to be productive. Ertz also wouldn’t fill the Bills’ need at tight end, mostly because he is barely a tight end at all. Since 2018 almost 65% of his targets have come when he was lined up in a traditional wide receiver position.

Ertz is a subpar run blocker and the Bills already struggle to run the football effectively. Ertz could help the Bills create mismatches in the Red Zone, but his 12.7 million dollar total cap hit is a pricy figure for someone that is only helping you with one side of the field.

While the narrative is that Zach Ertz would add something new to this Bills offense that they are currently lacking, the truth is that most of his skills are redundant with what the Bills already have.