Darren Waller considered retirement after 1st season with Giants

Highlights

• Darren Waller’s injuries hampered his 2023 season, but he remains a force when healthy.
• The Giants kept Waller despite the fact that he considered retirement after his first year in N.Y., as they believe in him as a reliable target in the passing game.
• Waller is expected back with the Giants in 2024 despite costing $14 million against the cap.

The New York Giants expected big things after trading for tight end Darren Waller during the 2023 offseason, but nothing seemed to go right for the team or the player in their first campaign together.

According to Paul Schwartz and Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, Waller contemplated retirement after his Big Apple debut, but is expected to be back with the team in 2024.

According to Schwartz and Dunleavy, Waller had considered retiring at the age of 31. The tight end has suffered hamstring injuries that have caused him to lose time over the last three years. He also has interests outside of sports: he has recorded two rap albums and is married to WNBA star Kelsey Plum.

Waller was made available via trade during the spring of 2023 after the Las Vegas Raiders had become frustrated with his frequent hamstring injuries. Unfortunately, hamstring injuries again bedeviled the tight end in 2023, as he missed five games during his first campaign with the G-Men.

Waller is a force when he remains healthy

Giants dealt with massive quarterback problems in 2023

Drafted in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens, Darren Waller converted from wide receiver to tight end in an effort to make it in the NFL. He struggled with addiction issues for several seasons and was suspended for the entirety of the 2017 campaign.

However, Waller signed with the Raiders in 2018 and had a quiet year getting re-acclimated to the pro game. He caught just 18 passes from 2015-2018 before becoming a star in Vegas in 2019, when he caught 90 passes. He continued to dominate in 2020, notching 107 receptions to lead all tight ends while making his first Pro Bowl as well.

The tight end was traded to the Giants following injury-plagued seasons in 2021 and 2022, but his bad luck followed him across the country.

New York had a mess at quarterback in 2023, losing quarterbacks Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor to injury. Playing with rookie free agent Tommy DeVito, Waller was still a force when healthy, catching 52 passes for 552 yards and a touchdown in the 12 games he played in.

During the offseason, the Giants will have to make a decision on the futures of quarterback Jones and running back Saquon Barkley, who is arguably the top RB in this free agent class and will have more than his fair share of suitors this spring. Things could have been made easier if they cut Waller; releasing the tight end could have saved the Giants more than $11 million on the salary cap.

In the end, the Giants and the tight end both decided that it would be for the best if he returned next season. Waller has pushed through times in his life that were far more challenging than a few hammy injuries, and doubtless he will be looking to prove that he can perform on the massive New York stage this season.

Waller will also be crucial in providing Daniel Jones with the conditions to succeed in his second chance in the NFL.

All statistics courtesy of Pro Football Reference and all contract figures courtesy of Spotrac unless otherwise noted.