ASHBURN, Va. — Zach Ertz is settling into his new colors, burgundy and gold, as day six of Washington Commanders training camp commenced in Ashburn Tuesday. While he was busy preparing for the upcoming season, he found some time to sit down with WUSA9's Chick Hernandez
The 33-year-old veteran tight end and former Philadelphia Eagle signed with the Commanders earlier this year.
"I've been in this division for a long time," Ertz said. "I think being able to be back in this division was a big reason that I wanted to come here. I think it's the best division in football."
From playing against Washington to becoming a Commander himself, Ertz said one of the things that stood out in regards to the team is that the city is dying for the team to be really good again. He hopes to be part of that franchise turnaround.
"Obviously, I'm a guy that wants to come in here and help set the foundation, set the culture, each and every day," he said.
While this will be Ertz's 12th season in the NFL, he doesn't plan to just coast into the sunset.
"I want to come out here, set the tempo every day in practice, and I still feel like there's things I can improve on as a player," he explained. "I still love this game, and I feel like I still have a lot of really good football, injuries in the past couple years have been extremely difficult. The ability, in my opinion, is still there. It's just been injuries that have kind of kept me off the field."
In joining the Commanders, Ertz has reunited with Kliff Kingsbury, Washington’s offensive coordinator who coached him in Arizona.
"Being able to be in this offense with Kliff again, is something I'm extremely looking forward to," Ertz said.
Another person he is excited to work with is rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. Eyes have been on Daniels, who was picked number two in the draft, as Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has yet to select a starting quarterback.
"I think Jayden has the possibility to be one of the best ones I've played with," Ertz said. "Obviously the physical tools stand out. He's arguably the fastest dude on the field every day. He can make every throw, but his willingness to learn, and have no ego, and be able to be one of the guys is really going to give himself the opportunity to separate himself from everyone else."
With a lot of brand new faces and coaches, the ultimate question is what exactly will the team be able to accomplish in the upcoming season. Ertz says the goal right now is to become a better version of themselves every day but ultimately, the team has to figure out their identity.
"When you put on the Washington Commanders offensive tape from this year, we want to be a team that you could tell that we really care about playing for one another," he explained. "That is exuded through the effort guys have blocking without the ball, finishing down the field for their teammates. How guys react when they may not get the ball for a couple quarters in a game, whether it's me or Terry or some of these other receivers, Jahan, diami, the running backs, B-Rob, how happy are we for another guy's success?"