Dallas Goedert’s talent, work ethic, and contract extension establish him as the Eagles’ long-term tight end

In his first game after signing a contract extension, Goedert was productive with five catches, including a highlight-reel, three-fingered grab that didn’t come as a surprise to coach Nick Sirianni.

Dallas Goedert makes a fingertip catch in the second quarter against New Orleans.Read moreHEATHER KHALIFA / Staff Photographer

by Josh Tolentino

Published Nov. 22, 2021, 5:00 a.m. ET

Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert added to his highlight reel Sunday afternoon with a jaw-dropping reception in the second quarter against the New Orleans Saints.

On third-and-6 from the Saints’ 27-yard line, Goedert hauled in a pass from Jalen Hurts with just three fingertips for a 14-yard gain.

“That was really cool. One of my favorite catches in a while,” Goedert said. “It was just Jalen trusting in me and me going to get it.”

On the following play, Goedert hauled in a 13-yard strike from Hurts for an apparent touchdown, but it was nullified due to a pair of offensive penalties. The Eagles ended up settling for a field goal that gave them a 20-7 lead.

Goedert further dissected his highlight grab: “When I chop-chopped at the top to break out [of the deep stick route], I felt the linebacker coming to press, so I knew I had to go and attack it. He almost made a really good play on it. But it stuck to my fingers.”

Coach Nick Sirianni said Goedert focuses on those types of awkward catches religiously in practice.

“That was a phenomenal, strong-handed catch,” Sirianni said. “He works on that every day. If you try to catch that ball with the defender ripping through there, and your first time attempting that catch is on Sunday, it’s going to come out. Dallas does that 20 times each day. All the credit goes to Dallas because he’s got strong hands in the first place.

“He works relentlessly at that, and he just keeps working on it over and over again. That’s who Dallas is. He’s a hard worker. It was good for other receivers to see that. It was like, ‘I don’t know when this play is going to come up, but when it does, it might be for a big third down.’

“You saw how strong he was with the football.”

Sunday was Goedert’s first game after he signed a four-year contract extension with $35.7 million guaranteed just two days earlier. A second-round pick from the 2018 draft, Goedert has established himself as a legitimate TE1. Despite playing in Zach Ertz’s shadow for a majority of his four-year career, Goedert ranks seventh among tight ends in yards after catch (907) and 10th in receiving touchdowns (14) since 2018.

“It was a little weight off my shoulder,” Goedert said of his extension. “I get to play free. I want to attack it the same way every day. Just go out there and work and do my job to the best of my abilities, doing anything to help this team get wins.”

The Eagles didn’t need to air it out much against the Saints, who struggled to contain Hurts and all three running backs. The Birds’ ground game produced a staggering 242 yards.

When Hurts did throw, he often looked in Goedert’s direction.

The 26-year-old led the team with five receptions for 62 yards; he caught fire early, catching three passes on the opening drive. Of 11 games this season, Goedert has been the Eagles’ leading receiver four times.

The Eagles (5-6) have won three of their last four games. Of their six remaining games, five are against NFC East opponents. They travel to play the Giants at 1 p.m. Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., where they also face the Jets the following week.

“We’re kind of on a roll and we just have to get ready to get to work on Wednesday and get ready for next week,” Goedert said. “We’ve been able to clean it up. Sirianni focuses on the little details and it’s definitely been paying off.”