Don’t look now, but it looks as if future Hall of Fame Tight End Jason Witten was able to find the fountain of youth during his one year of retirement spent in the commentators booth. He has caught two touchdown passes in back-to-back weeks and in doing so is proving age is just a number.
At 37 years young, Jason Witten is doing something almost unprecedented for NFL players. I don’t know the exact number, but very few players come out of retirement and look just as good, if not better, than they did before deciding it was time to hang up their cleats. He’s not putting up historic numbers (yet), but he is proving he’s still a viable weapon for the Dallas Cowboys in the passing game.
In Witten’s first two games back with the Dallas Cowboys he’s caught a total of seven passes for 40 yards and two touchdowns. Hardly impressive numbers for a starting tight end in the NFL the way today’s game is played, but his importance to the Cowboys on goes far beyond what statistics can measure.
Over the years, the Cowboys offense has depended heavily on the play of their TEs. No. 82 has had a lot to do with that dependency and it was sorely missed in 2018 during his year away from the game. Yes, the combination of Geoff Swaim, Blake Jarwin, and Dalton Schultz was serviceable last season, but the reliability and leadership just didn’t seem to be there. That seems to have changed now that Witten has returned.
Jason Witten’s ability to play with the hand in the dirt as a blocker and also use his veteran savvy in the passing game is already paying dividends for the Dallas Cowboys. He’s not racking up a lot of receiving yards, but I think we all agree we’d exchange receiving yards for touchdowns any day of the week and that’s where he’s been most impactful so far 2019.
Believe it or not, but the future Hall of Famer is on pace to shatter his single-season TD totals this season. The most touchdowns he’s had in one season was nine all the way back in 2010, nearly a decade ago, but right now he’s on pace to shatter that number. It’s been pretty impressive, and I for one hope he’s able to keep it up.
Now, I fully understand there’s a lot of football left to play in 2019, but the way Jason Witten is playing right now to start the season has to warm the cockles of your heart just a little bit. This is the kind of guy you want to root for and I am personally hoping/praying he ends up having a historic season. It would be the perfect ending to his career, if he decides to call it quits that is.
