FRISCO, Texas — The question wasn’t even completely articulated by the reporter before a knowing smile creased the face of Jason Witten on Thursday.

All the Cowboys comeback tight end needed to hear was the word “Giants,’’ and it elicited a wide smile — like “ice cream’’ or “Christmas morning’’ might to a young child.

You see, on the days when the Cowboys have played against the Giants in Witten’s 15 seasons in Dallas, there have been three co-owners of the Giants: the Mara family, the Tisch family … and Witten.

Witten is, quite simply, a Giants killer. The numbers tell the story: In 30 career games against the Giants, Witten has 154 receptions for 1,568 yards and 15 touchdowns. The receptions and TDs both represent career-high numbers against a single team for Witten, and his yards are second only to his production against the Eagles (1,642).

Those numbers represent a pretty significant chunk of his Hall of Fame-worthy career totals of 1,152 receptions for 12,448 yards and 68 TDs.

So that’s what makes Witten smile when he sees the Giants on the schedule, as they are for Sunday’s season opener at AT&T Stadium, and that’s what makes the Giants shudder at the thought of facing him.

And to think, after Witten’s retirement following the 2017 season to the comforts of the “Monday Night Football” TV booth, the Giants thought they were finally finished with having to deal with him.

Until they weren’t. What a terrible tease that turned out to be, when the pull of playing the game finally became so powerful it pushed Witten out of the booth and back onto the field for the Cowboys — who embraced his return as much as Giants coaches surely loathed it.

“I love playing the Giants,’’ Witten said after practice Thursday. “I’ve looked at [my personal success against them] over the years, and I don’t know if there’s an exact reason. Sometimes, you just have those games. It’s a great challenge, the division. For us, there’s a little bit of history there. When I think about it, I think of [Michael] Strahan, I think of [Justin] Tuck and some of the great pass rushers there over the years.

“Sometimes you just have those [great] games. I’ve heard that talk over the years, and I don’t pay much attention to it. I always enjoy those battles in this division, and certainly with the Giants and opening the season going against them. You embrace those. That’s what you play for. Hopefully, I can have another one of those games this week.’’

That would bad news to the Giants.

More bad news: Even after a year away from the game, Witten said he feels better than he ever has.

“I feel better about that decision today than when I made it back in March,’’ Witten said of his unretirement. “The reason for that is because that I know that I’m ready. That’s where the excitement comes in — from me knowing that I can go out there and let it rip and find ways to beat the Giants. That’s what I’m here for. When I made the decision to come back, I was thinking about these moments.

“All along in my gut and my soul, I felt like I still had something to give. It’s hard watching the game when you still feel like you can give something, it’s hard watching your teammates go out there and play [without you]. But the opportunity presented itself and I’m thankful for that, and I feel like I have something to prove.’’

Are there more nerves in anticipation of this comeback, which begins in earnest Sunday?

“If you don’t get nervous or don’t have a little bit of butterflies, you either don’t respect the game or the opportunity you have,’’ Witten said. “Of course I’ll have them. This is the Giants and Cowboys. This is what you play for. And certainly, when you’re 37 years old, these are the moments you appreciate a little bit more.

“I’ve got a heck of a challenge on my hands. I’m confident in what I can do. You’ve got to have that confidence to be critical of yourself and say, ‘OK, am I that same player?’ ”

If he is, that might be trouble for the Giants.