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Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says quarterback Tony Romo needs to adopt a Peyton Manning-style work ethic. But Romo’s good buddy and teammate Jason Witten says Romo already does plenty.

Asked about the Cowboys’ plans to have Romo more involved in the game planning, Witten said he has always thought Romo had a strong command of the offense.

“I’ve always felt like Tony was very involved in the process of the plays and our scheme, how we attacked,” Witten told Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com. “I think in any organization where you have an elite quarterback like that, you want him to feel comfortable. I think that’s something we’ve always tried to do, and it sounds like we’re going to continue to do that.”

Witten thinks people who have linked Romo’s new six-year, $108 million contract to a need to work harder don’t realize that Witten already works hard.

“Sometimes maybe more is made of that than it is,” Witten said. “I know he understands the expectations to play that position, probably even more so now after the contract than ever before. I think that’s something he embraces and says, ‘Hey, let’s get this started.’ I think we’re all excited. But we all know at this point, our actions will speak a lot louder than anything we say or talk about.”

Whatever anyone else says about Romo, he knows he’ll always have Witten in his corner.