3. Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles
I made an appeal to authority for breaking the tie between Zach Ertz and Mark Andrews. Perhaps the premier authority of them all.
Bill Belichick.
No no no. It’s not like I managed to get the greatest coach of all time on the phone to ask him which tight end he considered more dangerous. Although, you would think he’d be willing to answer a call from a fellow Wesleyan University football player. No, this answer is based on the film.
Last season, the New England Patriots faced both the Baltimore Ravens and the Philadelphia Eagles. Rewatching those two games this week I was reminded of an interesting schematic twist that Belichick put in place during that Eagles game.
Starting early in the contest on some critical third downs, and then increasing in volume over the course of the game, Ertz saw perhaps an unexpected face across from him in man coverage.
Stephon Gilmore, one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks and the Defensive Player of the Year a season ago.
When you see how Ertz puts defenders in a blender, like he does to Jeff Heath on this snap, you’ll see why Belichick wanted to put Gilmore on the TE:
Ertz is a great route-runner for the position, and like many other players on this list he can also use his frame and wingspan to create matchup problems. Forcing Belichick – and perhaps other defensive coaches in the future – to go to interesting lengths to try and slow him down. That kind of respect shows you just how valuable, and dangerous, Ertz is as a weapon.