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John Keim
ASHBURN, Va. — Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz made his intentions clear: He doesn’t want to retire.
Ertz, who just finished his 12th season, said he was energized during his first year in Washington. He finished with 66 catches for 654 yards and seven touchdowns — his most since 2018. That also happened to be the last season before this one that he played in every game.
“I’m not retiring just because I had so much fun this year,” Ertz said Monday. “I feel rejuvenated. I feel young. I played good football this year, so for me it’s figuring out everything going forward, and they know how I feel about this place.”
In Washington’s 55-23 loss to Philadelphia in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, Ertz posted season highs in catches (11) and yards (104). For the season, he ranked third among tight ends with 13 catches in the red zone and tied for third with three touchdowns in that area. He had three catches on fourth down in the regular season and four in three postseason games.
Ertz will be a free agent when the new league year starts in March, but has said how much he likes playing for Washington offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, with whom he spent parts of two seasons in Arizona. Kingsbury was a key reason Ertz signed a one-year deal with Washington last offseason.
“Obviously it’s a two-way street,” Ertz said. “I can bang down the door and say I want to be here, but if they don’t want me here then it’s a moot point.”
“This year I felt free to go out there and be myself. Every day people built me up in a way that believed in me, that had confidence in me. Obviously playing with Jayden [Daniels] was extremely fun. I feel we’re just scratching the surface of a quarterback-tight end combination. I don’t know what the future holds, but I still want to play football this year.”
Washington’s players cleaned out their lockers Monday and bid farewell after one of the franchise’s best seasons in years — even decades. The Commanders, who went 12-5 in the regular season, were helped by veterans such as Ertz and linebacker Bobby Wagner, another pending free agent who has said he wants to continue playing.
Ertz produced after two seasons in Arizona, both of which ended with him on injured reserve for a combined 17 games.
“I don’t want to say I proved I was the same player but I kind of did,” Ertz said. “I didn’t play as much as I did when I was 28 as far as playtime percentage, but I feel the impact I had when I was out there was similar. … I feel I took a step forward in leadership; it was my first time being voted a captain by my peers, it was an emotional thing for me. It was a year of growth on the field, off the field, a year I really loved.”
Washington general manager Adam Peters and coach Dan Quinn did not address their pending free agent class; with the season having just ended they weren’t ready to discuss players’ futures. But last month Quinn said Ertz has “had a big impact here.” He was initially only anticipating Ertz playing in situations, such as third down or red zone.
“I didn’t have expectations past that,” Quinn said. “It just expanded and he doesn’t play every snap, but he played more than I would’ve thought going in. And that’s, I think, a real tribute to him in the work that he did to get ready.”