The Buffalo Bills have been tied pretty close to tight end Zach Ertz for most of the offseason. The connection between player and franchise made sense as Ertz was granted permission to seek a trade and the Bills appeared as they would be in the market for an upgrade at the position over Dawson Knox.
The rumor mill seemed to go into overdrive at the beginning of June when the Bills restructured Stefon Diggs to free up close to $8 million in cap space. This number conveniently was also around Ertz’s cap hit for this season, which is about $7.8 million according to Spotrac.
Even with all the seemingly logical connections between the two sides, it doesn’t necessarily always mean a deal gets done. This may be one of those situations.
Recently, Howard Eskin wrote that he has been hearing that Ertz has a chance to actually start the season with the Eagles. He has been in the facility the past few weeks working out and is expected at training camp.
Latest on #Eagles Zach Ertz. I know hear there is a great chance Ertz will be on team at start of season. Been told Zach will be there at start of training camp Tuesday. Zach has been working out in team facility for close to last 2 weeks with teammates. He’s over the issues.
— Howard Eskin (@howardeskin) July 21, 2021
While this doesn’t necessarily mean a deal can’t happen, for any fans hoping that the Buffalo Bills would add the former three-time Pro Bowler, this certainly isn’t good news.
Why the two sides haven’t been able to reach a deal to this point remains a mystery but it could have come down to compensation. During the NFL Draft, Rob Maaddi tweeted that he was hearing the Eagles’ asking price was just too high.
I’m hearing teams are interested in Zach Ertz but #Eagles asking price is still too high for them.
— Rob Maaddi (@RobMaaddi) May 1, 2021
While Brandon Beane would have liked to improve the tight end position, and certainly hasn’t been afraid of making a trade, he seems to have a price in mind and doesn’t waver. This doesn’t mean that he tries to make low-ball offers, in fact, in some instances he has been criticized for giving up too much, like the Stefon Diggs trade last offseason.
Looking back on that deal now, this certainly worked out in the Bills favor but it seems like Beane has compensation in mind and doesn’t move too much from it.
In terms of Ertz, the regular season is still over a month away and plenty can change between now and then. For example, if Knox continues to struggle in training camp or Hollister doesn’t give the team confidence he can be the starter, the Buffalo Bills may be more willing to meet the Eagles where they are in terms of compensation.
However, for anyone hoping that Ertz would be with the Bills when they open training camp, this is something that just looks unlikely at this point.