numbers over the years, one thing is remarkably constant - his average per catch.
OK, take away his rookie season in 2003 when he caught just 35 passes and had a 9.9 yard average. After that, not only has Witten made the Pro Bowl every year, but he's had an average of 11 yards and change every season. It's pretty odd when you think about it.
Six straight years: 11.3, 11.5, 11.8. 11.9, 11.8 and 11.0.
Now looking at his receiving yards, they seem to vary a bit. He's been anywhere from 754 yards to 1,145, including a 1,030-yard season last year.
His touchdown numbers different story. In fact, they've dropped two straight years, from seven in 2007, to four and then two last year.
If those numbers drop anymore, you wonder what kind of affect it might start having on Witten. Is he still a Pro Bowler without a lot of touchdowns? Yeah, probably.
Where it could hurt him, though, is in future contract negotiations. We're probably a year or two away from that, but you know it's not too far down the road. Right now, Witten doesn't say anything about it, but he understands that winning games is far more important and he'll truly do whatever it takes to get there.
But you'd hate to think that a contract negotiation down the road might someday involve these very touchdown numbers and his team-first, block-second attitude when it comes to the red zone might come back to bite him.
However, that's all down the road. What is right in front of their face is the upcoming season and fixing the red-zone woes.
Witten caught 94 passes last year in earning those 1,030 yards. I'm sure he was one of the biggest reason the Cowboys even made it to the red zone. If and when they get back there this season, he needs to be rewarded a little bit more.
And as a result, the offense might even find more rewards as well.
