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One of the Dallas Cowboys’ greatest-ever players, Jason Witten, has his sights set on a new task: helping those who served in the armed forces.
Witten needs little introduction to most Cowboys fans as the 11-time Pro Bowler was one of the faces of Dallas for nearly two decades. But in his life after the NFL, Witten has taken on new challenges.
Right now, that is working with USAA and Philadelphia Eagles legend Brian Dawkins to give away vehicles through the company’s “Recycled Rides” program. Witten sat down with Heavy for an interview and expressed the joy of getting to help those who served.
“I’m excited about partnering with USAA, they’re celebrating their 100th year. With that, they’re going to give away 100 hundred vehicles throughout the year to veterans of our armed forces,” Witten said in an interview with Heavy. “I’m partnering with Brian Dawkins, who is a great rival, in conjunction with this Army-Navy game. We’ll be going up there this weekend and through the Recycled Rides program and the USAA, we’re going to give away a vehicle. I’m representing the Navy, he’s representing Army and to be able to give this honor to these guys who are Purple Heart winners, veterans of our country, it’s really neat.”
This will be the 123rd meeting of Army and Navy, and while Dawkins and Witten are working together, choosing different sides of the game almost makes it feel like the mid-2000s all over again.
Jason Witten on Supporting Midshipmen in Army-Navy
For Witten, being chosen to represent Navy goes hand-in-hand with how he’s always watched the game: supporting the Midshipmen.
In the interview, Witten explained that the game will be a bucket list experience and revealed his personal connection to supporting Navy.
“Kind of a bucket list game for me to be apart of it. It’s what the camaraderie and sportsmanship of football is all about,” Witten said. “My best friend from grade school growing up, he went to the academy there, so he’s kind of brainwashed me into thinking it’s ‘Naval Academy, Annapolis over everything.’ I love the way they play football.”
For the record, Navy does have the upper hand over Army in the rivalry. Navy leads 62-51-7 after a dominant record since 2000, going 17-5 in that span and coming off a victory in 2021.
Cowboys Legend Shares Memories of Brian Dawkins
Of course, Witten couldn’t discuss his work for veterans without talking about Dawkins. Dawkins has a similarly decorated career with four first-team All-Pro selections, with the majority of the former Eagles safety’s prime occurring when Witten first entered the league.
Witten was nothing but complimentary of the Philly icon, but didn’t mince words about the time he had to get the “Brian Dawkins surgery.”
“First off, I got a lot of bumps, bruises and even scars from Brian Dawkins. He tackled me one time and separated my AC joint, had surgery and we called it the ‘Brian Dawkins’ surgery. If you didn’t against him, you don’t know, but if you did, everybody knows the way he played. Great football player, great safety, but a great person too.”
Before moving on from the topic of Dawkins and the Eagles, Witten also had a message for Philly fans: he comes in peace.
“I’m just hoping when I go up there that those Philly fans don’t try to fight me or throw snowballs at me, they’re pretty ruthless but I don’t think this game will be that way.”
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