Zach Ertz finally gets on the field with the Eagles

Zach Ertz is admittedly a little behind his fellow rookie teammates.

Ertz, selected 35th overall out of Stanford and the Eagles' highest drafted tight end since Keith Jackson was picked 13th overall in 1988, was prohibited from attending the Eagles OTAs and rookie minicamp due to NFL rules.

Rookies who do not leave college early are not allowed to participate in workouts until their respective classes graduate, and Ertz instead worked out on his own while waiting for Stanford's commencement ceremonies.

To finally take the field at the NovaCare Complex on Tuesday and receive instruction from coaches outside of weekly Skype sessions was a major relief for the 2012 all-American.

"I spent all those months watching film, getting into the playbook," Ertz said. "And now just being out here with all the guys is an amazing feeling."

Getting a better grasp of that playbook is one of Ertz's main objectives moving forward, right along with becoming a better blocker. Ertz is a proven threat in the passing game, leading Stanford with 69 catches for 898 yards and six touchdowns last year, but feels he still has more to prove.

"I want to be a complete tight end," Ertz said. "That starts in the running game, and I want to be a physical blocker."

Ertz's father, Douglas, played football at Lehigh University in the early 1980s. While he would have enjoyed the chance to compete on the same campus as his father had training camp not changed locations this year, Ertz said there's nowhere he'd rather be this week.

That includes Stanford, Calif., where the 6-foot-5, 250-pounder left behind 75-degree days with little humidity.

"Little hot, little humid compared to California, but I love it," he said. "This is why I'm here."