DALLAS — Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten could no longer avoid the subject of Terrell Owens.

Appearing at a charity event for the March of Dimes, along with NASCAR's Denny Hamlin at Malibu SpeedZone, Witten finally discussed the Cowboys' decision to part ways with the controversial receiver.

Witten has avoided media inquiries on the subject since Owens was released last month. On Wednesday, he showed respect for Owens' contribution to the Cowboys and wished him luck at his new home in Buffalo.

"Terrell was a great player," Witten said. "I think I was a better player because of him and what he brought to the team. His track record speaks for itself. He has been good wherever he has been. He is going to help Buffalo a lot. But we have to move on from that. I have benefitted tremendously from having him outside. I will be the first to say that I was a better player because of him. But decisions were made, and we have to move on."

Witten said the Cowboys' main focus now is moving forward as a team.

But considering the late-season controversies regarding Owens, Witten and quarterback Tony Romo, there was little chance Witten could move forward without discussing Owens.

Owens accused Romo and Witten of playing the buddy system. Witten has led the Cowboys in receptions the past two years. It was also reported that Owens was jealous of Witten.

The Pro Bowl tight end declined to answer whether the Cowboys were better off with Owens gone. He also said it's off base to think that he, Romo or offensive coordinator Jason Garrett celebrated Owens' departure.

"To get perceived to be in the middle of that, that bothers you," Witten said. "Tony is a good friend, but he's the quarterback. He's a leader. You can't worry about that stuff. For people to think we're caught up in that, absolutely not. You can't win in this league doing that kind of stuff. The bottom line is when you're losing all those things get brought out and rightfully so because you've got expectations. You let the owner down and let the team down."

While owner Jerry Jones said that one of the reasons he released Owens was to make the team and the locker room more Romo-friendly, considering the pressure Owens put on the quarterback to get him the ball, Witten downplayed the chemistry angle.

"A lot is made of chemistry," Witten said. "Chemistry is good when you win. Everybody has got good chemistry when you win. For all of us, it's something we have to evaluate and understand. I don't want to look at it and say we are a better locker room. We've got a lot of good football players. We've got to go show it. We've got to stop talking about it. We need to stop talking about the playoffs and Super Bowls and just become a better football team."

Witten said the Cowboys have the players in place to make up for the loss of Owens. He said Roy Williams is more than capable of becoming the team's go-to receiver. He said the Cowboys have enough additional firepower in himself, tight end Martellus Bennett, running backs Felix Jones and Marion Barber, and receivers Patrick Crayton and Miles Austin.

According to Witten, the Cowboys have already begun the process of moving forward in their off-season workouts, banding together and focusing on getting better one day at a time.

And while the theme of the off-season has been about change — from dramatic roster moves highlighted by Owens' departure to coach Wade Phillips talking about changing his ways — Witten said the biggest change the Cowboys need is more wins after last season's disappointing and embarrassing 9-7 finish.

The Cowboys went from talking about the Super Bowl to missing the playoffs, ending the season with a 44-6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

"I think more than anything being 9-7 is unacceptable with this team," Witten said. "When you talk about change you want to find a way to get more wins. This team knows what type of work needs to take place."