Darren Waller had just returned home a day earlier from his honeymoon with Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum when his phone rang.
Still enjoying his newly married life, Waller was dealt a surprise. The Las Vegas Raiders called to inform him that he had been traded to the New York Giants. Shortly thereafter, he was contacted by Giants general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.
It was a FaceTime, as Daboll desires. And for Waller, his entire world had turned upside down.
“I was wrapping up with my physical therapist in Las Vegas yesterday. Probably around 11 a.m., I got a call from the general manager of the Raiders (Dave Ziegler), and he was just letting me know I was going to be traded,” Waller told reporters. “From there, I got a facetime call from Dabs (head coach Brian Daboll) and (general manager) Joe (Schoen) shortly after that. I was finding my way on a flight to Newark by 4 p.m. So, it’s been pretty crazy. Phone’s been going nuts. Trying to just say goodbye to Las Vegas people and get introduced to people with the Giants.
“I did not see this coming. I was getting ready to just do everything I could to make myself available for the Raiders and get ready for everything that was going to start in mid-April. It caught me off guard, but it’s the nature of the business.”
Not addressed by Waller on Wednesday afternoon during his introductory Zoom call was what would have led to the trade. However, a day earlier, the new bride offered her own speculation.
Prolly cause he wasn’t invited to the wedding lol https://t.co/K3i7oW5oe4
— Kelsey Plum (@Kelseyplum10) March 15, 2023
Waller admitted the trade was a “curveball” as it related to his fresh nuptials, but credited his wife for being understanding and accepting the unpredictable nature of business in the NFL.
“It was a bit of a curveball, coming back one day from the honeymoon. She supports me and wants to see me shine to my ultimate potential as a player while I still have the opportunity,” Waller said. “So, I’m grateful to have her support, and we’re going to do whatever it takes to remain strong together, whatever the distance looks like, the timing of it. I’m grateful to have somebody that understands how things work in an industry like this, and we just go forward and make the best of it what we can.”
With a partial focus now on acclimating to life in East Rutherford, Waller praised several of his new teammates for their “humility.” He also offered praise for Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, saying that he’d do whatever was asked of him in their “high-octane” offense.
Waller also recognized there would be questions about his health, but said he still wholeheartedly believes in himself and would avoid overworking himself this offseason, which he implied was the reason for his recent injury history.
“I believe wholeheartedly in myself, and I believe that through action and through consistent performance, Giants fans will believe as well. They can have questions at this moment about my health. Those are legitimate concerns, but I’m somebody that I believe I’ve addressed those issues. I’m willing to come out here and to be the best I can be to be a weapon for this team, a tool that this team can use to get to that next level that they want to go to. That’s exactly what I’m going to do,” he said.
“I’m feeling great right now. I know for me, the biggest adjustment I’ve had to make going into this offseason is making sure that I’m peaking at the right time. Something that helped me to elevate my game at such a high level was working myself so hard in those 2018, 2019, 2020 offseasons, to where it was almost too hard, and that became my norm. Now it’s about how do I become more efficient with it and making sure I’m peaking when the season starts, not showing up to training camp having worked so hard that I’m almost exhausted. That doesn’t set me up for success or the team up for success. For me, it’s about making sure I’m peaking at the right time and having those conversations with the organization. So far, just being here today, I really feel like it’s going to set me up to get back on the trajectory that I was on.”
Asked about a possible contract restructure, Waller said the Giants had not approached him about that.
