Don't be surprised if Pat Shurmur and Doug Pederson were Jason Witten's top two references when he applied for a job as an analyst on Monday Night Football.
Kidding, of course.
But the respective head coaches of the Giants and Eagles -- and both teams' fan bases -- certainly won't be sad to see Witten's 15-year Hall of Fame career with the Cowboys end Thursday when he announces his retirement. He reportedly will take Jon Gruden's vacant seat on ESPN's MNF broadcasts.
Is Dallas Goedert of Eagles the next Jason Witten?
In 30 career games against the Giants, Witten had 154 catches for 1,568 yards and 15 touchdowns. His numbers against the Eagles were nearly as prolific: 152 catches for 1,642 yards and eight touchdowns in 29 games.
Games against those two NFC East rivals account for 26.5 percent of Witten's career receptions, 25.7 percent of his career receiving yards and 33.8 percent of his career touchdown catches.
The 11-time Pro Bowler is fourth in NFL history in receptions, behind only Jerry Rice, Tony Gonzalez and Larry Fitzgerald. Only Gonzalez has more yards among tight ends.
Witten's decision also further weakens the Cowboys in the immediate future.
Quarterback Dak Prescott will be without his top two targets from his first two seasons now that Witten is in the booth and the recently released Dez Bryant is a free agent. Bryant wanted to stay in the NFC East Division to torment the Cowboys but it doesn't appear the interest is reciprocated.
Bryant, who shares an agent with Giants' first-round pick Saquon Barkley, reportedly turned down an offer from the Ravens.
So who is the new No. 1 tight end in the NFC?
Zach Ertz of the Eagles has had the longest and most productive career, but Jordan Reed of the Redskins is nipping at his heels.
The wild card in the equation is Evan Engram, who had the best season by a rookie tight end in the last 15 years by totaling 64 catches for 722 yards and six touchdowns in the first 15 games of the season for the injury-plagued Giants.
The Cowboys drafted tight end Dalton Schultz of Stanford in the fourth round last weekend after passing on Hayden Hurst in the first round.
The Eagles made a sly move by trading up one pick in front of the Cowboys in the second round to take tight end Dallas Goedert to form a 1-2 punch with Ertz rather than have him fill Witten's shoes.
Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.
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