Will these two “breakout players” finally break out this season?
26 August 2017 Eagles News
Tight end Zach Ertz and defensive end Vinny Curry were both given big contracts a year ago with the Eagles hoping their big investment would pay off. There were a few minor setbacks last season for both Ertz and Curry and at the end of the day, they had an underwhelming season.
However, it is a new dawn and a new day in Philadelphia and both players seem poised to finally have that break out year we have all been hoping for.
Let’s first start with Ertz. He had a few injury problems last season but still managed to catch 78 passes for 816 yards and four touchdowns. Towards the end of the year, he lit it up with quarterback Carson Wentz.
Now, having had his first full offseason with the same quarterback for the first time in his career, Ertz looks to be Wentz’s go to guy and is ready to lead the Eagles in receptions. Already in the preseason, we have seen Wentz lean on Ertz a lot. He managed to have 78 receptions last year which is a lot for a tight end, but Ertz will see an increase this season. The Eagles need Ertz to hit that 85 receptions, 1,000 marks this year, similar to Greg Olsen last year.
It is not that Ertz has been bad for the team, however, we all know there is more to him. The Eagles need to have the December Ertz all year round and this year is the year it will happen.
One of the biggest disappointments last season was the production the Eagles got out of Vinny Curry. After the season, Curry did come out and say he dealt with MCL injury, but if that was the case, he should have sat out and dealt with it, instead of playing through it.
He ended up last season with the same amount of sacks as Marcus Smith who was released by the team a month ago. However, all seems good with Curry this year and against the Dolphins he looked like himself again. He was fast, explosive and even got himself a sack. Curry does have competition at his position, but it is possible that that competition will fuel him. If the Dolphins game was any indication, Curry looked really good.
The money invested into these two players is a lot, but if they can get good production out of them, it is worth it. This season offers them another chance to prove their worth and expect both players to do exactly that.