Zach Ertz has been instrumental in Jayden Daniels’ success

Nice move, Adam

When Zach Ertz was signed by Washington in early March, there were questions about how much he had left in the tank. He had been injured for significant stints during the prior two years, putting up two of the three least productive seasons of his career.

A lot of people were skeptical about his ability to make an impact, but the people who mattered – including offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury – still believed in Ertz, who spent part of 2021 and all of 2022 in Arizona, where Kingsbury had been head coach.

This season, Ertz is on pace for about 65 receptions and 650 yards (he has 61 receptions for 610 yards and 6 TDs so far), which are solid numbers, but many of his receptions have come at critical moments both for the team and his young quarterback.

Despite a career that has included multiple Pro Bowl seasons and five seasons of over 800 receiving yards, Ertz’s “receiving success percentage” – his percentage of receptions that gain at least 40% of the yards to go on first down, 60% of the yards required on second down, or 100% of the required yards on third or fourth down – is the highest its been in his 12-year career. This season, nearly 62% of his receptions have met that threshold. His prior high was 58% in 2014.

He’s also managed to post his highest passer rating when targeted this season, 104.3. For context, Jayden Daniels’ overall passer rating this season is 101.2.

At 34, Ertz is enjoying himself, and seems to be embracing the mentor role that he’s playing with Jayden Daniels.

And, in turn, Ertz’s reliability has helped shore up Jayden’s confidence, particularly during clutch time.

In a testament to his good health and productivity this season, Ertz was able to meet or exceed several performance goals in his incentive-laden contract during Week 17, providing him with an additional $750,000 this season.

In addition to Ertz’s work with Daniels, there’s reason to believe his veteran experience will pay dividends with other players on the roster. Some, including the team’s owner, wondered aloud if it made sense to draft a tight end so high with Ertz already on board. Adam Peters and company answered with an emphatic “yes.” Ben Sinnott, who was only “scratching the surface” when he was drafted in 2024, will surely have benefited by having learned under Ertz for a season as well.