Witten: Cowboys Miss Dez, But Understand His Absence

Veteran tight end Jason Witten readily acknowledges that the Cowboys miss Dez Bryant, who has yet to sign his franchise tender in hopes of receiving a long-term deal, and is staying away from Valley Ranch this offseason as a result--but they also understand his absence.

“You’d love to have Dez there,” Witten said at his football camp over the weekend, per the Dallas Morning News. “I think that would be great. Dez loves playing ball. He’s a great teammate. You miss him when he’s not out there, because of the passion and the energy that he brings. He’s a tone-setter.

“I think everybody understands the business side of that. If there’s one person who wants to be there playing catch and throwing and running and working out, it’s Dez.”

In the mean time, having seen how Bryant works out over the past five years, Witten has no doubt that he’ll be ready to roll whenever he does rejoin the team.

“He’ll be there,” Witten said. “He’s taking care of himself. He’s going to be ready. It’s just part of the business. Hopefully it gets worked out. But if there’s going to be one guy that’s ready, it’s going to be Dez Bryant.”