The Las Vegas Raiders got very good production out of their tight end group in 2019. Nevertheless, they still went ahead and signed veteran Jason Witten in the offseason. The Silver and Black’s wide receiver corps have plenty of potential, but it may be the tight ends that turn out to be the most reliable.Â
Jason Witten joins a loaded tight end room
Darren Waller caught a team-high 90 catches for 1,150 yards for the Raiders last season. Rookie Foster Moreau also contributed with five touchdowns of his own. However, the unit suffered a hit when the LSU product had a season-ending knee injury against the Titans.
Trying to err on the right side of caution with Moreau’s injury, the Silver and Black added Witten this offseason. So far, Moreau has participated without restrictions in camp, but even if he is fully healthy in Week 1, Witten will have a role in the Raiders offense.
The potential Hall-of-Fame tight end likes his new teammates
If someone knows a thing or two about playing tight end it’s Witten. He could act as if he were better than anyone. Instead, he recognized the talent of his teammates and talked about it on the team’s official website. The former All-Pro talked about Waller being young and how he hasn’t reached his peak yet.
“I’m really impressed with the tight end group. I think it starts with Darren Waller. What an absolute freak guy he is. He’s athletic and talented and the future is extremely bright for him. He’s still extremely young at his position, so he can do it all. He can run, he can catch and he’s smart, and wants to be great.”
Witten went on to compliment Moreau, whom he describes as receptive in meetings, and passionate about the game of football.
“It transfers over to Foster [Moreau]. Going into his second year — I thought he had a really good rookie season. He loves football, he’s hungry and they’ve been sponges in the meeting room.”
The former Cowboys tight indeed sounds excited about the Raiders tight end group. Even though Waller and Moreau are coming along just fine, they will definitely benefit from being the same room as Witten.
Related:Â Raiders HC Jon Gruden May Give RB Josh Jacobs Heavy Workload in 2020
Jason Witten himself got praise thrown his way
Witten is not just giving compliments, he got some as well. A few days ago, Raiders offensive coordinator Greg Olson talked about how the tight end had been mistake-free in practices and how much of a professional he was.
Day 2 of walkthroughs. Jon Gruden tried to throw multiple formations at Jason Witten, with shifts and motion, to see where the veteran TE was at in the new playbook.
Olson: "There were no mental errors on Jason’s part. He is a true pro.â€
Witten will address the team tonight.— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 4, 2020
At this point in his career, Witten could just lay back and take it easy. Rather, he is leading with example and giving his best despite the fact he’s years removed from his prime. The Silver and Black might’ve mot gotten the Witten that got selected to the Pro Bowl 11 times, but they got a leader and someone who makes all those around him better.
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