Jason Witten isn't close to retirement, but admitted after the Dallas Cowboys' loss on Sunday that he knows he has a "shelf life" as a player.

A reporter mentioned that Witten has never been to a conference title game.

"Yeah, I'm well aware of that," Witten said. "Obviously that's something I realize, regardless of how many catches you have or any of that stuff, your legacy will be remembered as how you play in these certain situations in the playoffs, and that's tough. It's tough for me to swallow that. It's not about any one individual. I’m proud of this team. I really have my whole career I've tried to work really hard to not make it about me, and that's why there's emotion that goes along with this.

"I'm in my 14th year, and you know there's a shelf life for everybody. You put everything you have into it, and when you come up short it's tough. It's not about a paycheck. It's about an opportunity to compete and lead and win and play in these types of games. This team had a special feel all the way through, and to come up short like that for me is hard."

Witten has one more year left on his current contract.