Christopher Jason Witten is a color analyst for ESPN’s Monday Night Football and former American football tight end who played 15 seasons for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Tennessee and was drafted by the Cowboys in the third round of the 2003 NFL Draft.
Jason Witten’s Net Worth 2018: $35 Million
Witten makes a whopping $35 million as of 2018.
Witten ranks second in all-time career receptions and receiving yards by an NFL tight end, trailing only Tony Gonzalez.
2003-2008
Witten was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round (69th overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft. Entering the league as a 20-year-old rookie, Witten started only seven of the fifteen games he played in. On September 7, he made his NFL debut in a 27–13 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, where he had a single reception for 13 yards. Overall, he registered 35 receptions for 347 receiving yards and one touchdown. Witten was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team for the 2003 season.
In 2004, Witten had a breakout season leading the NFC with 87 catches, which was also the 11th most in NFL history by a tight end and a Cowboys team record for the position.
Witten finished sixth in the NFL among tight ends with 66 receptions and became the first Cowboys tight end to have at least 65 receptions in consecutive seasons. He had 757 receiving yards and six touchdown receptions in 2005. As a result of his successful season, he was named to his second Pro Bowl.
At the end of the 2006 NFL season, Witten became just the tenth tight end in NFL history to post three consecutive seasons with at least 60 receptions. He registered 64 receptions for 754 yards (11.8 yard avg.) and one touchdown, while being named to his third Pro Bowl.
Witten had a career year during the 2007 NFL season, breaking his own single-season Cowboys tight end record for receptions with 96 and becoming the first franchise tight end to reach 1,000 receiving yards in a season. He became the third tight end in NFL history with 96 or more catches. On December 9 against the Detroit Lions, Witten’s 15 receptions tied an NFL record held by Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow Sr., for most receptions in a game by a tight end in NFL history.
Witten made his 400th career reception in the Cowboys’ Thanksgiving Day game against the Seattle Seahawks on November 27, 2008. On December 28, against the Philadelphia Eagles, he completed a 42-yard pass for the first and only pass of his professional career. He posted 81 receptions, which ranked 13th in the NFL for 2008, 952 yards, 4 touchdowns, and was named a starter for the 2008 Pro Bowl.
2009-2013
In the 2009 season, Witten had another Pro Bowl season, making 94 receptions for 1,030 yards and two touchdowns. He was also given the NFL Iron Man Award.
At the conclusion of the 2010 season, Witten was named tight end of the Year by the NFL Alumni Association.
Overall, Witten hauled in 94 receptions for 1,002 yards and nine touchdowns for the 2010 season. He was named as a First Team All-Pro for the second time in his career. He was ranked #36 by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2011.
Witten finished the season with 79 receptions for 942 receiving yards and five touchdowns playing in all 16 games. On November 13, 2011, Witten surpassed Ozzie Newsome to become the tight end with the third most receptions in NFL history with 663. He was ranked #75 by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2012.
On December 26, 2012, he was selected to his eighth Pro Bowl. For the second time in his career, Witten was nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, this time winning the award and the $25,000 donation to his charity. Overall, he finished the 2012 season with 110 receptions for 1,039 yards and three touchdowns. He was ranked #41 among his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2013.
On September 15, Witten surpassed Shannon Sharpe with the second most receptions as a tight end in NFL history. His three catches during the game against the Kansas City Chiefs brought his career total to 817. He was ranked 98th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2014.
2014-Present
In the 2014 season, he finished with 60 receptions for 654 yards and five touchdowns. He was named to his tenth career Pro Bowl for his 2014 season. He was ranked 93rd by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.
During the 2015 season, he was asked to be more involved in the blocking than usual, because of the team playing with four different starting quarterbacks with varying degrees of knowledge of the offense. He led the Cowboys with 77 receptions for 713 yards and three touchdowns.
On March 28, 2017, Witten signed a four-year contract extension with the Cowboys through the 2021 season.
On September 10, 2017, in a 19–3 win against the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football, Witten recorded the Cowboys’ lone touchdown. In addition, he passed Michael Irvin for most career receiving yards in franchise history. He became the third player in NFL history to have at least 150 catches against one team, joining Jerry Rice and Larry Fitzgerald. On September 17, 2017, in Week 2 against the Denver Broncos, Witten had ten receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown in the 42–17 defeat. He finished the season with 63 receptions for 560 yards and five touchdowns, on his way to his 11th Pro Bowl, which tied a Cowboys record with Bob Lilly.
On April 26, 2018, reports surfaced that Witten was going to retire and accept a position as lead analyst for ESPN’s Monday Night Football telecasts. A week later on May 3, Witten officially announced his retirement and confirmed he would be joining Monday Night Football for the 2018 season.
As of now, Witten is the color analyst for ESPN’s Monday Night Football.