DALLAS, Texas – November is a meaningful time of year for the Cowboys, regardless of record.

In just more than a week, the team will host its traditional Thanksgiving Day game. And before the Cowboys do that, they have another important annual tradition to tend to.

Monday morning, just hours after returning home from a big win in Pittsburgh, the Cowboys partnered with UnitedHealthcare and Albertsons to split up around the Dallas-Fort Worth area to serve an early Thanksgiving dinner to people in need.

"I've said it many times, but it always puts a smile on your face to be able to come out and to see these fans and all of them having such challenging times in their lives, put a smile on their faces and know they're pulling for us," said Jason Witten. "It means a lot for us and hopefully we can make a difference in their lives."

Witten is no stranger to the yearly event, given that he's enjoying his 14th season with the organization. The Pro Bowl tight end led a large group of veterans to visit with men and women at The Salvation Army Carr P. Collins Social Service Center in Dallas.

[embeddedad0]Experienced rookie players weren't the only ones to take part, though, as the Cowboys' super star rookies dropped by to visit The Salvation Army Mabee Social Service Center in Fort Worth.

"It's special to be able to use the platform of playing for this great organization for a greater cause and coming back and helping just serve food for these people," said Dak Prescott.

Regardless of the record, it's always a special moment when the Cowboys show up to give back to the community. But, given his experience with both good times and bad, Witten can offer a special perspective on how exciting it is for fans when the team is winning – which is currently happening quite often.

"The energy is a lot better," he said. "It's lot easier to get up after a big win and come here. But certainly to look back at the year and for them to know how much they're pulling for us, it's a great community to have behind you."

In addition to serving Thanksgiving meals, other players like Ezekiel Elliott, Travis Frederick, Zack Martin, Brandon Carr, Lucky Whitehead, DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford visited with fans, took photos and signed autographs, creating quite the memorable experience.

"These people are awesome," Prescott said. "Just the support we get to come in and take all the pictures and see the smiles on their faces after what they're going through, it's great."