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As for what's showing on the screen, Swaim can't help but see familiar No. 82 because the franchise leader in games was on the field nearly every snap for 15 years before his sudden retirement to go into broadcasting last month.
"Well, it's hard to watch film and not have Witt in the film. You know what I mean?" Swaim said with a chuckle Wednesday after the final voluntary offseason practice before mandatory minicamp next week.
"I don't know what tape you can bring up of the Cowboys in any sort of relevant way that Witt's not on the field. It's always him. It's always him. It's always him. And it's that way for a reason."
Swaim is the team's oldest tight end at 24 with nine regular-season catches and 94 yards to show for his first three years in the league. That's nine catches and 94 yards more than any of the other four 鈥?and 1,143 catches and 12,354 yards fewer than Witten, the club leader in both.
The next-oldest tight end? Rico Gathers, the former Baylor basketball standout who hadn't played football in nearly a decade when the Cowboys drafted him two years ago. He's 24, but four months younger than Swaim.
Next is Blake Jarwin, a second-year player who got in one game last season after the Cowboys activated him from the practice squad. Rookie Dalton Schultz, a fourth-round pick in April, was 6 when the Cowboys drafted Witten in 2003. The fifth tight end is undrafted rookie David Wells.
"Everybody has to start a game at some point in time, or play a first play at some point in time," new tight ends coach Doug Nussmeier said. "I don't look at it as a negative."
The Cowboys had some experience besides Witten after last season, but James Hanna beat the 11-time Pro Bowl player to retirement by a couple of weeks. The 28-year-old Hanna had persistent knee issues.
The player most likely to do a double take was Swaim, a seventh-round pick out of Texas in 2015. In a matter of days [url=http://www.seahawksauthorizedshops.com/authentic-byron-maxwell-jersey]http://www.seahawksauthorizedshops.com/authentic-byron-maxwell-jersey[/url] , he went from understudy still building his resume to the only Dallas tight end with one.
"It was sort of overnight," Swaim said. "But again you have to adjust and move on. That's how everyone approached it, 'Wow, OK, here's what's in front of us now.' It doesn't do me any good to look in the past. It doesn't do me any good to go, 'What's going on?'"
Gathers missed all of last season with a concussion after an impressive preseason that raised hopes about his development. It was a significant setback for someone with little football background who chose the NFL over the NBA because he thought it was his best shot at a pro career.
Now, though, Witten's retirement has left the position wide open for the 6-foot-8, 285-pound Gathers, who hasn't played in the regular season yet.
"There's really no major opportunity to really do anything of growth from as far as expecting to play, expecting to take snaps from him because he's not supposed to let that happen," Gather said. "It opens up windows for everybody to be able to come in and prove themselves."
Schultz, who played at Stanford, saw reports of Witten drawing interest from the networks the way longtime friend and teammate Tony Romo did a year earlier when the former Cowboys quarterback decided to retire rather than play for another team after losing his job to Dak Prescott.
It's only natural for draft prospects to ponder the idea of replacing a franchise icon such as Witten, who was days from turning 36 when he retired. It just doesn't get much past the pondering.
"It's all speculation [url=http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/keke-coutee-jersey]Authentic Keke Coutee Jersey[/url] , right?" Schultz said. "I think people try to do their best at like, hey, there's a potential fit. But in reality, you're going to go to whoever you're going to go and that's just how it's going to be."
Now the question is who says how it's going to be in the tight end room for the Cowboys. And if anyone says it's automatically Swaim, he would disagree. He has a new favorite word for how that leadership grows: organic.
"We're figuring things out together," Swaim said. "There's no need for me to be in there yelling at somebody who's a year younger than me. That doesn't make sense. That wouldn't be right."
Just as it doesn't seem right for him to glance around the room and not see Witten.
The last time Golden State got Stephen Curry back from a knee injury in the playoffs, he immediately returned to brilliance.Curry returned for Game 4 of the Warriors‘ five-game Western Conference semifinals against Portland two years ago and made 16 of 32 shots with five 3-pointers and scored 17 points in overtime on the way to 40 in a 132-125 victory. He grabbed nine rebounds and dished out eight assists.
If that is any indicator, the New Orleans Pelicans better be ready for a superstar as eager as ever to get back on the court and chase a repeat championship.
The two-time MVP, sidelined since spraining his left knee March 23, is expected to play Tuesday night in Game 2 against New Orleans with what is sure to be a fired-up crowd at Oracle Arena. The Warriors have won a franchise-record 13 straight home playoff games.
In late December against Memphis, Curry came back after being sidelined 11 games with a sprained right ankle to score 38 points with 10 3-pointers.
”I’m not too worried about him. I’ve seen him come back from injuries many times,” coach Steve Kerr said Monday. ”… Sometimes it’s just one shot that gets him going.”
And what a boost Curry’s presence could be for the defending champions who are already clicking on both ends.
”He loves the game just as much as anybody I ever been around and I know he wants to play. I’ve just been thinking about that, just worrying about how he feels not playing,” reigning Finals MVP Kevin Durant said. ”… Excited for him to get back just to be in a place where he enjoys most, which is playing ball [url=http://www.raiderscheapstore.com/nick-nelson-jersey-cheap]Nick Nelson Jersey Raiders[/url] , and the other stuff, we’ll figure it out. But I’m more so excited as his brother that he’s out there, he gets to play basketball, something that he loves to do.”
The Pelicans prepared all week to see Curry back on the court and they know they must bounce back fast to stay in this best-of-seven series after a 123-101 flop in Saturday night’s Game 1.
Golden State scored 41 points in the second quarter and 76 in the first half – both new franchise-bests for the postseason. The Warriors shot 13 for 20 in the second, making four 3s and 11 of 14 free throws.
While New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry thought his team’s long layoff might have hurt, the players said it was much more.
”We hang our hats on defense,” Rajon Rondo said. ”What happened in the second quarter is inexcusable. I can’t blame it on a week off of rest. It’s a lack of communication and not being disciplined. If we can clean that up, I think we’ll be fine.”
Anthony Davis and Rondo will challenge the Pelicans to play with more intensity on the defensive end. The Warriors thrived when they made things hard on Davis to take shots, got stops and pushed the ball in transition.
”We’re very confident. It’s one game. They win by 40, you win by one, 90, it’s one game,” Davis said. ”It’s still best-out-of-seven. Our job is to learn from what we messed up tonight and get prepared for Game 2.”
The Warriors have taken their defense to another level, led by Durant and Draymond Green – who is coming off a triple-double and has 15, 19 and 18 rebounds in his past three games [url=http://www.seahawksauthorizedshops.com/authentic-customized]Authentic Customized Seahawks Jerseys[/url] , respectively.
Golden State also is pushing the pace, a far different game than in the first round against the Spurs.
”We all like to get out in transition,” Warriors guard Shaun Livingston said Monday. ”We can slow it down and we understand to win games we’ll have to execute and maybe win some grind-out games, that’s just part of playoff basketball, but everybody loves to run.”
Here’s something to know about the Cleveland-Toronto series opener, also Tuesday:
CAVALIERS AT RAPTORS. Game 1, 8 p.m. EDT, TNT
LeBron James just won his fifth straight Game 7 and now the Cavs will face the Raptors for the third consecutive postseason.
Toronto eliminated the Wizards in a six-game first round and now the challenge is stopping LeBron and his supporting cast.
”We understand everything starts and stops with him,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. ”There’s certain things you want to give up with him, there’s certain things you have no choice in the matter. There’s a pecking order as far as what we want to give up, what we live with.”
The Cavs are 8-2 against Toronto the past two postseasons and went 5-2 in matchups during the regular season the past two years.
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AP Freelance Writer Ian Harrison contributed to this report from Toronto.
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