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[h=1]By PATRIK WALKER 72 minutes ago[/h] It's clear Jason Witten didn't return simply to mentor young talent.
Having climbed down out of the ESPN broadcast booth only one season after retiring from the Dallas Cowboys, the perennial pro bowl tight end is entering his 15th season in the NFL and has arguably never looked hungrier as he gets back to the business of playing football. He's made it clear that despite the team's initial plan to reduce his snap count for 2019, he's hellbent on "making it tough" on head coach Jason Garrett and newly-promoted offensive coordinator Kellen Moore when it comes to manifesting that thought — not conceding a thing to those who are instantly pushed down the depth chart with him back in the mix.
The reason for a lack of concession is two-fold, with the first being Witten's thirst for football and the second rooted in how heightened competition makes everyone step their game up, or else.
That's how Witten sees it, and compatriots Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz agree — as they soak up as much as they can from the future Hall of Famer.
"He's done a great job of leading us since he's been back," Jarwin said, via DallasCowboys.com. "It's been great so far. I'm excited to get into training camp with him and [then] into the season. Anytime I can pick his brain about things — even during practice — I'll come over to him and ask, 'Hey what are you thinking here? What are you thinking there?", and it's great to have that guy in a room like that.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Schultz, unlike Jarwin, wasn't privy to Witten's tutelage before now — having been drafted on the heels of Witten's retirement. As the upstart readies for his second NFL season, he's already getting a strong taste of it, and Schultz doesn't view the All-Pro's return as anything but positive.
"His football IQ is second to none," he said. "The guy knows exactly what's going on at all times. He's locked in. The standard last year was high, but I mean with Witt[en] back, it's even higher. Following his lead and learning how he works and how he takes his job so seriously, I think has benefitted all of us."
For his part, Witten has been very transparent this offseason in his aspirations for 2019, and one of those things is to buck the narrative that he's somehow a progress-stopper.
"I think I come back with a different perspective, probably that what I had before I retired," said a clear-minded and self-aware Witten. "Not just as a mentor, but seeing the game and how I want to share it with them, and all of those guys are eager to learn. They're driven [and] they want to be successful. All of those little fundamentals and all of those details, that's what I found my passion with.
"And those guys are going to be good football players."
The more they can absorb from a legendary talent like Witten, the more likely it is that prediction will come true.
Having climbed down out of the ESPN broadcast booth only one season after retiring from the Dallas Cowboys, the perennial pro bowl tight end is entering his 15th season in the NFL and has arguably never looked hungrier as he gets back to the business of playing football. He's made it clear that despite the team's initial plan to reduce his snap count for 2019, he's hellbent on "making it tough" on head coach Jason Garrett and newly-promoted offensive coordinator Kellen Moore when it comes to manifesting that thought — not conceding a thing to those who are instantly pushed down the depth chart with him back in the mix.
The reason for a lack of concession is two-fold, with the first being Witten's thirst for football and the second rooted in how heightened competition makes everyone step their game up, or else.
That's how Witten sees it, and compatriots Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz agree — as they soak up as much as they can from the future Hall of Famer.
"He's done a great job of leading us since he's been back," Jarwin said, via DallasCowboys.com. "It's been great so far. I'm excited to get into training camp with him and [then] into the season. Anytime I can pick his brain about things — even during practice — I'll come over to him and ask, 'Hey what are you thinking here? What are you thinking there?", and it's great to have that guy in a room like that.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Schultz, unlike Jarwin, wasn't privy to Witten's tutelage before now — having been drafted on the heels of Witten's retirement. As the upstart readies for his second NFL season, he's already getting a strong taste of it, and Schultz doesn't view the All-Pro's return as anything but positive.
"His football IQ is second to none," he said. "The guy knows exactly what's going on at all times. He's locked in. The standard last year was high, but I mean with Witt[en] back, it's even higher. Following his lead and learning how he works and how he takes his job so seriously, I think has benefitted all of us."
For his part, Witten has been very transparent this offseason in his aspirations for 2019, and one of those things is to buck the narrative that he's somehow a progress-stopper.
"I think I come back with a different perspective, probably that what I had before I retired," said a clear-minded and self-aware Witten. "Not just as a mentor, but seeing the game and how I want to share it with them, and all of those guys are eager to learn. They're driven [and] they want to be successful. All of those little fundamentals and all of those details, that's what I found my passion with.
"And those guys are going to be good football players."
The more they can absorb from a legendary talent like Witten, the more likely it is that prediction will come true.