They always say people have a different way of saying things in Texas. Whether that’s true is really left up to interpretation.
What we do know is that that Dallas Cowboys themselves have a way with idioms. Some of them are hard to understand, much like this quip from owner Jerry Jones.
It’s one of many quotes Jones himself has come up with in the past that leaves us questioning what language he’s speaking.
Apparently, we can add tight end Jason Witten to this growing list.
In defending teammate Dez Bryant’s absence from practice and team meetings earlier this week, Witten had a rather interesting quote.
“Look, we all go through different things,” Witten said, via Todd Archer of ESPN. “That’s handled within teams. Guys address it and move forward. It happens every week in the NFL from that standpoint. So, yeah, you always work together and talking and that’s what teammates are, they’re brothers. There’s a great saying inside this building by somebody I tremendously respect – let’s not circumcise a mosquito here, you know? I think that has great value in this. As things go on, move forward and we all understand that. This game means so much to Dez Bryant and that’s a relationship that I’ve really enjoyed over the years in seeing that and the brotherhood that you have with that. Dez will be back out there in no time.”
It’s a long quote, and the entire thing must be included to gather the context of what Witten was saying.
But the greatest takeaway here?
“Let’s not circumcise a mosquito.”
Okay, um … Has anyone in the history of ever tried to circumcise a mosquito?
That’s probably something reporters should have asked Witten. Maybe it’s part of the curriculum in Tennessee. Again, we’re not too sure.
The gist of what Witten was saying is rather clear.
Let’s not over-analyze what Bryant has been going through this week. Reports out of Dallas indicated that he went AWOL from the team Monday-Wednesday. The sole reason for this has to do with him fearing what the MRI results on his injured knee would be.
Yes, it’s immature.
Yes, it speaks to larger issues during Bryant’s tenure in Dallas.
But it’s not at the point where people should start examining his relevance to the franchise. The guy was upset. He didn’t handle it right. Let’s all move on. That was the theme from Cowboys camp on Thursday.
If nothing else, maybe the team should force Bryant to circumcise a mosquito before he returns. That’ll definitely teach him.