Jason Garrett Fights Back Tears After Babe Laufenberg's Son's Death

Extremely emotional moment at Cowboys camp Thursday ... head coach Jason Garrett fought back tears during his meeting with the media after learning of his friend's son's death.

Luke Laufenberg -- the 21-year-old son of ex-Cowboys QB Babe Laufenberg -- was diagnosed with Leukemia back in 2017 ... and he died Thursday after a 2-year-long battle with the disease.

Garrett addressed reporters shortly after learning the news ... and the scene was tough to watch.

Garrett was extremely emotional in trying to describe Laufenberg's son, saying, "You guys have heard me talk about fight a lot. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a better example of that in my life."

"What he’s gone through over the last couple of years, the spirit that he had every day, to battle through it, to always be thoughtful about the people in his life, ‘How’s my mom doing? How’s my dad doing? How’s my brother doing?’ Amazing."

Garrett and Babe's playing careers never crossed paths ... Jason started his Cowboys QB career in 1993 -- 3 years after Babe finished his time in Dallas.

But, the two have obviously gotten close over the years ... Jason's been the head coach of the 'Boys since 2010, while Babe's done work as the team's radio analyst for years.

Garrett didn't field any other questions from reporters during his news conference Thursday ... finishing his time at the podium by praising Luke for his courageous battle.

"It’s such a tragedy. It’s so hard to understand. But, I know I will and everybody who ever knew him will be forever inspired by the life that he lived.”