Jason Witten believes broadcasting will make him a better player

After shunning a television career to return to the football field, Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten believes that experience will make him a better player.

When Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten decided to hang up his cleats and retire in May of 2018, he promptly joined ESPN’s Monday Night Football to become a color commentator. A year later, and Witten has shunned his broadcasting career to return to the football field as a player.

Witten returns to a Cowboys’ team fresh of a playoff run and in need for more consistent and experienced play at the tight end position. The allure of hoisting a Lombardi Trophy still clearly burns in the 37-year old, whose focus remains winning in Dallas.

Witten’s presence, along with the arrival of defensive end Robert Quinn and wide receiver Randall Cobb, has ushered in a veteran renaissance on what was one of the youngest teams in the NFL last season.

Dallas certainly hopes the mix of experience, energy, and enthusiasm will finally be the key to a deep playoff run, as the team has been unable to get past the divisional round for two of the past three years.

As for the Cowboys’ future Hall of Fame tight end, questions abound about what his level of impact will be following a year of retirement as a commentator.

Here’s what Witten himself had to say during a segment on a special podcast titled Hangin’ with the Talkin’ Cowboys Break Thursday when asked by DallasCowboys.com staff writer David Helman about how his time as a broadcaster has changed the way he views things as a player.

"“Absolutely it did. One of the things that I liked about that experience was I grew as a football player, as a fan, as a student of the game because the ability to unemotionally go in an evaluate very few can do … my perspective changed. I think kinda seeing the big picture of it instead of just ‘hey, here’s the end I’m blocking, this is the coverage I’m looking at with the Giants,’ it really peeled back a lot of things, notes that I have now. I think it’s going to make me a better player.”"

Now entering his 16th season in the NFL, Witten is a welcomed and much-needed stabilizing force on an offense that is quietly one of the most talented in the entire NFL. In 2017, Witten posted a sold stat-line of 63 receptions for 560 yards and five touchdowns. It was enough for him to earn his 11th Pro Bowl nod.

Although there are questions about his impact on the field, no one questions Witten’s leadership and work ethic off it. And it’s in the locker room, film room, and classroom where the veteran could be the most valuable. New offensive coordinator Kellen Moore would surely benefit from gleaning some of the new perspective Witten acquired during his brief, but educational broadcasting career.

The hope has to be that Jason Witten’s veteran presence will help cure the Dallas Cowboys’ red zone woes after the team posted a lowly 51.7 conversion percentage last season, one of the worst in the NFL.