If NFL teams were loaned a crystal ball for draft weekend, and that crystal ball told them the prospect they were eying with their third-round pick was guaranteed to make a Pro Bowl at some point in their career, the card couldn’t be turned in fast enough.
But what if that crystal ball said that third-round pick would make a staggering 11 Pro Bowls? Andalso set franchise records for career catches, career receiving yards, and games played, land in the league’s top five for all-time receptions, be a surefire Hall of Famer, and an eventual Ring of Honor member?
Talk about return on investment.
Jason Witten was chosen by NFL.com’s Eric Edholm as one of the top-five draft values for his position over the last quarter-century, and it’s impossible to argue otherwise.
Chosen 69th overall out of Tennessee, Witten was the fifth tight end selected in 2003. (No sign on this list of Bennie Joppru or Teyo Johnson, both taken a round earlier that year.) And Witten made an immediate impact in Dallas, missing just one game as a rookie, and that was because of a broken jaw.
It would, famously, be the only game he would ever miss due to injury over his 17 NFL seasons.
Consistency was Witten’s trademark. He rarely put up huge numbers, though he did turn in four 1,000-yard campaigns. His 2021 season was unusually prolific: he set a new mark for tight ends with 110 catches, including one game in which he hauled 18 passes- still an NFL tight end record- and he even collected the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.
As Edholm notes, “Witten’s brief retirement, a tough lone season with the Raiders, and a failed stint as a Monday Night Football broadcaster might have sullied his reputation unfairly in recent years.” But, he concludes, “when you combine his receiving ability, blocking prowess, leadership, and unquestioned toughness, he stacks up as one of the finest ever to play his position.”
Witten is ranked the fourth-best tight end value on the list, just ahead of Jimmy Graham. Ahead of Witten are George Kittle, Rob Gronkowski, and Travis Kelce- every one of whom was drafted outside the first round.
Edholm also did rankings for the rest of the offensive positions, but no other Cowboys were chosen. With a high draft slot bringing added expectations, it’s not surprising that first-round superstar linemen like Zack Martin and Tyron Smith missed the cut in the value conversation. But even fourth-rounder Dak Prescott was left off the quarterbacks’ list in favor of Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Lamar Jackson, Russell Wilson, and Brock Purdy.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys’ Jason Witten named among best draft values of millennium