Tony Romo has always had great things to say about Jason Witten, calling him one of the greatest Cowboys ever and whatnot. He's obviously helped him to have a great career. But should those of us with Jason Witten on our roster be hoping Romo (back) isn't able to start in Week 9?
When Romo isn't in the lineup, the team's backup quarterbacks seem to lean on the big tight end even more. Brandon Weeden came in and threw a touchdown to Witten, helping him have his best game all season. And in the 12 other games Romo has missed since 2010, Witten has had some of the most productive games of his career, including fourwith double-digit receptions. That includes a 12-catch game in Week 17 a year ago. He's scored in eight of those 13 contests, and put up at least 7 receptions seven times.
Witten can thank Romo for a fine career, but he can also thank Romo's backups for helping him put up good numbers whenever they have to play. Those quarterbacks (Jon Kitna, Kyle Orton, Brandon Weeden) aren't anything special, either.
Witten's numbers in games without Romo the last few seasons are presented below.
| WITTEN WITHOUT ROMO, 2010-PRESENT | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Opp | No | Yds | TD |
| 2010 | NYG | 9 | 95 | 1 |
| 2010 | JAC | 10 | 97 | 1 |
| 2010 | @ GB | 3 | 44 | 0 |
| 2010 | @ NYG | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| 2010 | DET | 4 | 48 | 0 |
| 2010 | NO | 10 | 99 | 0 |
| 2010 | @ IND | 5 | 42 | 1 |
| 2010 | PHI | 7 | 69 | 2 |
| 2010 | WAS | 10 | 140 | 1 |
| 2010 | @ ARI | 8 | 45 | 1 |
| 2010 | @ PHI | 4 | 46 | 1 |
| 2013 | PHI | 12 | 135 | 0 |
| 2014 | WAS | 5 | 70 | 1 |
--Andy Richardson