The New York Giants thought they were getting a solution to their tight end woes last March when they traded for Las Vegas Raiders Pro Bowler Darren Waller.
The 6-foot-6 Waller had been one of the NFL’s top players at the position until a spate of injuries slowed him down. The Giants were hoping he’d regain his old form in 2023, but injuries once again punt a crimp in the plans.
This spring, Waller is still undecided if he’ll continue his NFL career. The Giants have been patient with him and are respecting his personal space, but may not wait too much longer.
“I talked to his agent,” general manager Joe Schoen said a few weeks ago. “Darren is going to take time and make his decision. He’s still undecided. I’m not going to get into the details. I’ve talked to him. He is undecided.”
In a recent interview with Forbes, the 31-year-old Waller gave some insight into his current thought process.
“I’m at the point now where I’m like, ‘OK, how much am I willing to give to the process,'” said Waller. “If it’s not 100%, it’s a disservice to the teammates and the organization that I have. I’m still trying to make a decision on that and it’s tough to make one or the other out of emotion.”
Waller was traded from Las Vegas to New York after signing a three-year, $51 million deal with the Raiders with the intention of staying in Sin City. Only two weeks prior to the trade, Waller had married Las Vegas Aces point guard Kelsey Plum.
“Being traded itself was not a surprise. Going to the Giants was a surprise. I had heard earlier in the season a couple of different times that I was being shopped around from my agent,” he said. “When I was traded, it wasn’t the trade itself, it was more so to the team. I had heard the Green Bay Packers and Miami Dolphins and some other teams.”
Waller’s life has been uprooted and that, perhaps, along with the injuries has him second-guessing his future in New York.
“People don’t see a lot of the human element when it comes to moving across the country, finding somewhere to live, you don’t have any friends,” Waller said. “There’s a lot of things that help a human being thrive and those things get taken away from you. You have to rebuild and work through that adversity. Those are the kind of things that you have to roll with when you’re in this type of industry.”
But Waller may decide to stop the roll. If so, the Giants will be ready. They’ve been loading up their tight end room with veterans and could grab another in the 2024 NFL draft.
