Why doesn't Witten get more Redzone Opportunities?

by Dare2Dream on Dec 23, 2009 12:20 PM CST

When the Cowboys need a key first down, they look to Witten as the top option. So why doesn't Witten get more Red Zone Opportunities?

Jason Witten has been targeted 108 times by Tony Romo for 82 completions. He has 837 yards for a 10.2 YPC. He is on pace for his 2nd 1000 yard season. But he has only 1 Touchdown. Why is this? Witten is a beast to cover. No Linebacker or Safety in the league can cover him. If opposing defenses line a Cornerback on him, Witten will manhandle the said Cornerback. With the Cowboys ranked 12th in overall points scored, why doesn't Garrett target Witten more in the Redzone? I think going into the Playoffs (WHEN the Cowboys make the Playoffs) for the Boys to be successful, we need Witten to be more involved in the Redzone. Below is a list of NFL Tightends and their Stats for the 2009 season.

Top Tight End Targets

Player	Team	Tgt	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
Tony Gonzalez	ATL	123	78	820	10.5	6
Dallas Clark	IND	116	89	997	11.2	10
Vernon Davis	SF	116	69	858	12.4	11
Jason Witten	DAL	109	82	837	10.2	1
Kellen Winslow	TB	109	68	752	11.1	5
Antonio Gates	SD	105	75	1071	14.3	6
Brent Celek	PHI	96	65	754	11.6	7
Greg Olsen	CHI	95	52	471	9.1	6
Heath Miller	PIT	87	68	698	10.3	5

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Comments

Possibly because no opponent

saw a viable Red Zone target for DAL other than #82. So they pay extra attention to him inside the 20. GB clearly did that.

That approach could changewith the emergence of M Austin, but who else is a consistent threat? Every time RW emerges as a potential one, he seems to regress.

Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are

by tdships on Dec 23, 2009 12:32 PM CST reply actions

I think that is one reason...

another is that Witten has been blocking alot of the times because of the poor play of the offensive line.

by The Immortal Iron Fist AKA AFB on Dec 23, 2009 1:32 PM CST up reply actions

Bingo

Last year, they doubled T.O. in the RZ. This year, it’s clearly Witten they want to stop.

"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."

- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

by 5Blings on Dec 23, 2009 1:48 PM CST up reply actions

It's not as if Witten has been a scoring machine.

He has only had one year with more than 4 TD’s since Romo took over.

In 2006 he only had 1 TD too.

I don’t doubt that he’s being covered well, but it’s not like teams aren’t doubling Austin now.

Everything that I’ve read has been that once they get to the goalline Witten has been a blocker more.

by The Immortal Iron Fist AKA AFB on Dec 23, 2009 2:02 PM CST up reply actions

Dunno

I’m not the kind to sit and count how many times he is in the pattern vs being held in to block.

I wonder what the loss of Telly B has meant to Witten?

"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."

- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

by 5Blings on Dec 23, 2009 2:29 PM CST up reply actions

Multiple reasons

1: Witten is not very fast. When he’s got space in the middle of the field, he can make a move and the ball can be placed in a spot where he can use the open space to run and use his body to shield the defender and make the catch. In the red zone, there is less room and he can’t be led by as much so the defender can catch up and make a play.

2: Corners can cover him. Give me a break. He is not uncoverable. If he was, Charles Woodson wouldn’t have picked the RED ZONE pass to him off and we might’ve ended up beating Green Bay.

3: Defenders can take chances in the Red Zone. This is because generally, you’re gonna see maybe one move from Witten in the end zone. There’s not enough room for long drawn-out routes. Defenders know that once Witten makes one move, that’s where he’s going, so they jump routes and take chances because they know the ball is coming quick and it’s not like they’re going to get burned deep by a double move or something. As mentioned earlier, Witten isn’t really fast or agile enough to shake a guy in close quarters. Yeah, he’s great. But it’s not because he’s fast. Woodson probably doesn’t jump the route quickly enough to get the pick if that throw to Witten was happening on say, the 45 yard line. Because he’d be conscious that one false jump and Witten’s scoring a 45 yard TD (unless he gets caught, which certainly has been known to happen).

I’m fine with how Witten is used. He’s not some imposing force like Gates. He’s big, but not tall or athletic really. Hence, he’s good in the open field, but once you get close to the goal line, his value decreases. And I’m ok with that. We have enough weapons on the team that we don’t need Witten to be a Red Zone threat. Because as the Green Bay game showed, we’re probably better off using our other weapons in those situations.

Please don’t take this as a bashing of Witten post or anything. I love Witten. But I realize that he is not just some unstoppable TE or anything. He is not perfect. One of his weaknesses is speed and that hurts him in the Red Zone in my opinion. He’s still great. But there’s no point in trying to force him into something he’s not really cut out to excel at.

by Key19 on Dec 23, 2009 11:15 PM CST reply actions

Agree with most of it but....

Physically he is a mismatch on the majority of corners in the league. He isn’t what I would call the best athlete, but he is tall.

Six foot 5 is tall.

But you’re right, he isn’t a leaper, he isn’t a jump ball guy.

Once you get in the redzone, while he still is a good target, he’s not Gates. LB’s have problems covering him in the middle of the field but once you get into a smaller space, it’s easier.

by The Immortal Iron Fist AKA AFB on Dec 24, 2009 7:20 AM CST reply actions