Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten’s record-setting day marred by defeat – NFL News
It took almost 10 seasons for Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten to defeat record of wide receiver Michael Irvin and become the franchise’s all-time leading receiver, but his record-setting day was marred by Cowboys’ defeat against Atlanta Falcons in
Week 9.
Heading to Week 9 game, Witten needed four catches to beat the record of Irvin, who caught a total of 750 catches in his career.
Against Falcons, Witten took seven catches and surpassed Irvin’s record. Witten now has 754 catches to his name.
However, this milestone was not celebrated the way it should have been. Even before this game, Witten had made it clear that he was focused more on securing victory for team rather than setting the record.
And when he has set up this record, he is not enjoying it very much because the team lost the game and its playoff chances are in jeopardy.
According to the details present on the team’s website, Witten acknowledged that it was a great achievement to beat Irvin’s record and become the franchise’s all-time leading receiver, but regretted the team’s defeat. The tight end said:
“To pass Michael and what he stood for and how he worked and obviously the player he was, that’s special for me. But ultimately … you don’t play to get catches. You play to compete for a championship and win ballgames. That’s been my approach since day one
when I arrived in Dallas, and that’ll be my approach until I leave.”
Witten added:
“I’m tremendously humbled. From day one when I came here as a 20-year-old kid, I was just trying to do better each time I got an opportunity.”
By the looks of the things, Witten still has plenty of football left in him, and if he keeps on displaying high fitness standards that he has been maintaining since the start of his career, he might go on improve his record to a great extent.
Witten has only missed one game in his entire career and has been an asset for the team. His teammates and former players have also appreciated him for setting up the record.
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