IRVING, Texas -- On Monday, Jason Witten became the 12th player in NFL history to record 1,000 catches in a career.

He is just the second tight end to reach that mark, joining Tony Gonzalez.

Over Witten's 13-year career, 10 quarterbacks have completed a pass to him, from Tony Romo (649 passes, 7,287 yards) to Brad Johnson (seven passes, 52 yards).

Here are the quarterbacks' thoughts on what it has been like to be Witten's teammate.

QUINCY CARTER

In 2003, former Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter connected with Jason Witten for 35 catches for 347 yards and one touchdown. Sporting News/Getty Images

"I had a special relationship with him because he was a rookie learning the ropes and everything when I played with him in '03. I remember we had a talk, I think, after like the eighth or ninth game and he might've had 15 catches [actually eight] up until then and I told him, 'Hey, they're going to play Cover 2 against us because we're having some success with Terry Glenn, Antonio [Bryant] and Joey [Galloway] outside.' I said, 'I'm going to need you coming down the stretch.' And I think he ended up with like 30 catches [actually 27].

"One play stands out and has to be the Arizona game. He caught a ball and his jaw broke. But he came up with the catch, too. I wasn't supposed to throw it to him. I thought he was 'hot' by the look when they brought two guys off the edge. I threw it in between two guys and he got his jaw broke. He didn't miss a beat. Didn't miss a beat.

"He's not eating food for six weeks and they wired up his mouth. He was going out there only having shakes. That dude. He came in and he was practically a leader then or one of the people you looked up to about halfway through the season because of what he did after he got his jaw broke.

"That dude, that's one of my favorite teammates ever. I'm talking high school, college, in the NFL. Just a hard-nosed guy that was born to play football."

VINNY TESTAVERDE

(2004: 87 catches, 890 yards, six touchdowns)

"When I got there I'm talking with Parcells and I was asking Bill about the different personnel we had and he was really high on Jason at the time. He told me, 'Make sure you're giving this tight end a look. He's going to be good for you.' The game plans we came up with each week, he was involved in them and he was a big part of that. You always tried to get him the football because he's an intelligent player. He was a great route runner, even in his second year. He was what I call 'quarterback friendly' in that he runs his routes at the right depth all the time. Some guys just aren't quarterback friendly. They don't understand the softness of zones or if it's man-to-man. Jason got all that as a young player and he certainly continues to do that over his career.

"Bill likes tough, smart, physical football players, and Jason's all of that. And he had a great attitude. Great teammate. Great person off the field. What's not to like about Jason Witten?

"There's one funny story I think of. It's my first game and we're walking out of the tunnel at Texas Stadium and I'm with Jason. I start naming plays and I'm like, 'I know what to do on that Texas route. I know what to do on this audible, but tell me one thing: What side of the field is our bench on?' He started laughing. Here's the rookie basically telling the veteran where to go. When I see him we always chuckle about that."

DREW BLEDSOE

(2005-06: 82 catches, 922 yards, six touchdowns)

"He's just consistent with everything he did. He was just always open. When he ended up being open, he caught the ball for us. Just extremely reliable on every play. The cool thing with Jason, much like Ben Coates was in New England for me, he's a great receiving weapon but he's a true tight end. He really blocks in the running game. He blocks in the pass game when he needs to but he's also a weapon down the field. A lot of these guys end up catching for big numbers. They play tight end but that's kind of in quotation marks. They're more just receivers, whereas Jason is a true tight end. He was very polished. He seemed like he was much older and more experienced than just a third-year guy at that point. He's somebody that's always where he's supposed to be. He seemed much more like a veteran guy even then.

"There was a seam ball he caught against the Chiefs for a touchdown. That was pretty cool. I forget who the safety was but he covered him as well as he possibly could be covered but Jason has such unique hands that you're able to throw it over the top of a guy and he will pull it in. I remember the reaction of the defensive back was one of disbelief. Like, 'I just can't cover it any better.'

"What he's done is a real testament to his training and his work ethic ... particularly playing the position he plays where you take so much punishment. That's not something you can do that long without being extremely diligent in how you train, take care of your body and all the work that goes into it."

TONY ROMO

Tony Romo has completed 649 passes for 7,287 yards and 37 touchdowns to Witten from 2006 to 2015. AP Photo/James D Smith

"I think that the rare, gifted players who have size, speed and those just God-given tools, rarely do those people that are that gifted do they possess to the ability to think like they are small. When I say that I mean that Jason has great technique when he runs his routes. When you combine that fact with how his brain works so quick and his understanding of the game at such a high level and the God-given gifts you get the most complete player that there is.

"Jason was going to be good no matter who he plays with, but I do believe that one of those underrated attributes is his ability to analyze the coverage, the leverage and the situation and make a decision that the quarterback would want you to make in that split second. So when I see it he sees it the same way, so I'm always able to let go of the ball a half second sooner because you can trust he's going to be there.

"It's more of an innate thing right when we got there, and then you go and bridge the gaps for some of the smaller details to get to where it's second nature.

"[One thousand catches] is almost not a real stat. It's just not. You don't set out for that goal because it's almost unattainable for 99 percent of the players. If there is a stat for a guy who plays tight end or wide receiver, that's got to be the number that makes you an automatic qualifier. Jason's a Hall of Famer anyway. I think he's proven that with what he's done more than the numbers."

BRAD JOHNSON

In 2008, Brad Johnson completed seven passes for 52 yards to Witten. Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

"His daily work. He's a guy that can mix in with defensive backs. He can talk with the linebackers. He can talk with the equipment guys. He can have a conversation with Jerry Jones. Obviously he's great friend with Tony Romo. When he has an idea about something, it could be a blocking scheme or it could be a pass play, he can communicate it with everybody. With some guys you're like, 'Yeah, yeah,' and you don't really pay as much attention. But his word means something. He's usually right on.

"I consider him an unbelievable leader. Probably one of the best leaders I've been around. Him and John Lynch. They can communicate and mix with every player on the team. They can have a conversation with the coach, a GM, the play-caller. It meant something. But they can relate to anyone. Really they're someone you look up to and respect.

"With him he can see the whole field. Some guys can only see themselves, 'I'm open. I'm open.' But he understands what everyone's route, not only his route. He can draw up every play with everybody's route, and understand where the coverage is coming from and how they're trying to play it. That's the game he picks up on fast. I think the dialogue and friendship he has with Tony, you can call it a security blanket but the trust is there and they believe in each other. You can bounce ideas off him, and you need someone like that. That's hard to find in people.

"In basketball, they say he sees the court. On the football field, he sees the field. He understands coverage, how they're covering him, how they're covering everybody. A lot of people you can say something on the side and you nod your head and not believe him. With Jason, you believe in him."

JON KITNA

From 2010-2011, Jon Kitna completed 64 passes for 697 yards for six touchdowns to Witten. Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

"Competitive character. You put Jason in an athletic contest against other tight ends in the league he's probably not going to even be in the top 10, maybe not the top 20 honestly, but the dude never loses. His competitive character. He just understands how to put himself at an advantage against guys that may be better, that may be stronger, that may be bigger, but he doesn't lose. He wins one-on-one battles all the time. He's always working on his craft. He hates being wrong at anything. He wants to know it all as a quarterback knows it. That's competitive character. Most guys that make it to the NFL don't like losing, but Jason doesn't like losing a snap. That's what I think separates him.

"[Mike Martz] used to say to the receivers, 'Your job is to be where you're supposed to be when you're supposed to be there and never fool the quarterback. That's Jason. He's never three yards off his route. He's always right where he's supposed to be. If there is a miscommunication he wants to talk about it, figure out what we can do different and how to make it better. He never fooled the quarterback. You knew you could trust him, so you threw it. A lot like Calvin Johnson when I first played with him in Detroit. You had to learn to throw it to him even when he was covered because he was going to make the catch. Jason is the same way."

STEPHEN McGEE

From 2010-2011, Stephen McGee connected with Witten for 12 catches for 87 yards and one touchdown. Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

"My only victory in the NFL came on a completion to Jason Witten in Philadelphia toward the end of the game. So that's a special memory for me, because I didn't have many of those. He's obviously an incredible player. I'll never forget his presence in the huddle and his leadership. With a new quarterback and a guy with little experience, that meant a lot to me as a young guy. Just his professionalism and the respect he gave me in the huddle being the new guy, it meant so much to me.

"I think the route concept was actually called 'Philly,' believe it or not. It was a flat route with a go route, and it was quick game. I know we were in the low red zone, about the 4- or 5-yard line. He got open, because it's Jason Witten and he always gets open, and he made the play.

"Jason Witten is the most demanding teammate that I've had a chance to play with, and in a good way. But when the lights were on he was the teammate that everybody wants. I was thinking about this: He's the one teammate or the rare athlete that when we're all sitting around the dinner table one day I'll hope to tell my son about. He's that guy. There's no other teammate I played with that I hold with as high regard as Jason Witten. He's the guy I tell people about all the time. Was he demanding? Yes, but [in] a great way. He holds the standard high. He leads by example. He does his job every day. That's what makes him so special."

KYLE ORTON

(2012-13: 16 catches, 183 yards, one touchdown)

"There's a few guys that deserve to play back in the '40s, '50s, 60s', 70s and could have played in any decade, and he's one of them. He relates to all the players. He relates to the young guys. He relates to the old guys. Old guys love him because he's old school. Young guys love him because he's cool. He transcends the generations that he plays.

"He's the type of guy, looking back and trying to think of those teammates you really loved to be around and all that stuff, he finds his way to the top of the list all the time. What a great player, and that's a short list he's on now with that many catches and he deserves to be there right with them.

"For me, I think just in terms of route-running ability he's as good as anybody that's played the position. Just getting open, as a quarterback, you always have that in the back of your head. Probably the greatest luxury with Jason is in those situations on third down or in the red zone and the defense throws you a look that, quite honestly, you don't know what's going on. But you know in the back of your head to find Jason because he sees it just like you do and he'll find that open spot even if it's not where he's supposed to be.

"When you work the middle of the field where he loves, I don't know what the number is but what, maybe 50 percent of the throws you've got somebody in front of you, a defensive lineman, hands in front of you. There's not ever going to be a throw in the middle of the field that's going to be a clear picture where you can see what's going on. But you see that guy and you can trust and find him. It's tough to live in the middle."

BRANDON WEEDEN

(2014-15: 24 catches, 257 yards, one touchdown)

"I don't even know where to start. He is the ultimate pro. In my opinion, the best total football player definitely in the last 10-15 years. I mean he's just the complete package. He's basically a quarterback playing tight end. He can run block. He can catch the ball down the field. He can catch the short or intermediate routes. He's just so smart. He has complete control of what we're trying to do. But he's just the ultimate, ultimate pro. I've been around a lot of good athletes and guys like that, but I've never seen a guy that does his business the way he does.

"He knows everything. Everything. I mean he knows when the back should be cutting back. He knows the fronts. He literally knows everything about the offense. It's kind of scary. I know he's been in it a long time, but he knows all of the reads. He obviously knows the protections. There's not many players in this league at that position that know it all like that. He's one of a kind. They don't grow on trees."

MATT CASSEL

(2015: 27 catches, 255 yards)

"I've only been here for a short period of time. These other guys can tell you, they've been around him for much longer than I have. But even a guy that's been in the league for 11 years and to watch him work on a daily basis, I mean he is inspirational. He's your consummate pro.

"He goes out each and every day, works hard. Doesn't matter if he has bumps and bruises, he'll be out at practice. And not only that, there's reason why he's so good. It's because he works at his craft. He doesn't take anything for granted. And he's a great leader. And I think everybody respects him in this locker room. I think everybody respects him around the league because they know what he puts into it.

"Well, I've been watching him run some of those stick routes and everything like that for the last 10, 11 years, and he continues to do that but he continues to have such a great feel that he uses his body well. He comes out of his breaks. He understands angles. And I just think he's one of the best all-around tight ends that's ever played the game, in my opinion. I just think it's something inside some of these guys that they don't go out there and go through the motions. They work every day. And when I say they don't take it for granted it means they go out with a purpose every day, and you never see them go out there and go through a drill where it's half-assed. He's going to go out and give you his all and he's going to get guys' attention. He's going to get people focused and I think [he's among the] very great that I've been around, whether it's been Junior Seau or [Tom Brady] types of the world or Jason. They all have that kind of innate quality about themselves that it's something that's just bred into them that they're going to go out and be ready to go every day."