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  • FA Tight End #12
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    Darren Waller retired from the NFL after eight seasons.
    After spending all of the offseason away from the Giants, Waller is now ready to hang it up. The eight-year vet entered the league as a sixth-round pick of the Ravens back in 2015. The former Georgia Tech wide receiver battled through substance abuse issues early in his career and missed the 2017 season as a result of being suspended for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. He returned to the Ravens in 2018 and was traded to the Raiders at the end of that season. In 2019, Waller, who had made the permanent switch to tight end, broke out for 90-1145-3 and earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2020 when he caught 107 passes for 1,196 yards and nine touchdowns. Injuries would plague him over the last three years, as he appeared in just 32 of a possible 51 games and played in just 12 games for the Giants in his lone season with the team. Waller overcame late draft capital, early struggles in his career, and a positional overhaul to carve out a solid career for himself. His retirement frees up roughly $11.6 million in cap space for the Giants, who are now expected to go with third-year tight end Daniel Bellinger as their starter. They also selected Penn State’s Theo Johnson with the No. 107 pick in this year’s draft.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports the Giants expect Darren Waller to announce his retirement.
    The most we’ve seen of Waller this offseason came from a music video he posted last week. The Giants haven’t given a deadline for Waller to announce his decision, but according to Raanan, he “is likely to make a decision by next week’s mandatory minicamp about his playing future,” adding that people close to the team believe he’ll opt to walk away. Waller caught 52 passes for 552 yards and one touchdown over 12 games last season and has played in 12 or fewer games in each of his last three seasons. The soon-to-be 32-year-old has dealt with multiple injuries over the years. Third-year tight end Daniel Bellinger would presumably get the first crack at the starting job if Waller does retire. In two seasons, Bellinger has caught 55 passes for 523 yards and two touchdowns and could have some streaming upside on a team short on receiver talent.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    Giants HC Brian Daboll said Darren Waller has not been attending voluntary OTAs.
    Waller will likely remain away as he continues to contemplate his future. Giants GM Joe Schoen said last month that the team is not giving Waller a deadline to make a decision, but as training camp draws closer, we’d expect things to be finalized one way or another. Waller once again dealt injuries that limited him to 12 games last season and averaged just 10.6 YPR, his lowest total since breaking out with the Raiders in 2019. While he’s still the best tight end on the Giants’ roster, nagging injuries have followed him for three straight seasons, and he will turn 32 shortly after the start of the season. Waller’s uncertain future has made him virtually free to draft in early drafts, making him a low-risk, medium-reward player at a position that lacks upside outside of the top players.
  • NYG Tight End
    Giants selected Penn State TE Theo Johnson with the No. 107 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
    Johnson (6'6/259) didn’t see much run during his first two years in Happy Valley and posted a minor breakout campaign in his third season on campus with a 20/328/4 receiving line. He followed that up with a 34/341/7 line in his final collegiate season. Johnson never took on a full-time role at Penn State, failing to reach a 60 percent route run in a single season. When he was on the field, he wasn’t a priority of the passing attack and logged a dismal .14 targets per route. Johnson drastically boosted his draft stock at the combine with a 4.57 40-yard dash and a 4.19-second three-cone drill. He also crushed the jumps en route to a 9.92 RAS. He showed glimpses of that athleticism in contested catch situations, bringing down 67 percent of his career contested targets, but he contributed little after the catch and was inconsistent as a blocker. Johnson has the size and athleticism to big a difference-maker at the next level, but he needs to drastically refine his technique as a run-blocker and as a route-runner. With rumors swirling that Darren Waller is retiring, Johnson may be thrust into a starting role as a rookie, even if his game isn’t NFL-ready just yet. He could provide TE2 numbers based on volume alone if Waller is out of the picture.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    Giants GM Joe Schoen said the team hasn’t given Darren Waller a timeline to make a decision on whether or not he will retire.
    It was reported in early March that Waller was considering retirement. A month and a half later, that still appears to be the case, and the Giants are in no hurry to get a decision from the veteran tight end. Schoen said the team is “giving him time and space to make a decision on what he wants to do” and didn’t have much else to say regarding the situation. Waller has battled numerous nagging injuries in recent years and appeared in just 12 games last season due to a hamstring injury. Waller was still serviceable when available, totaling 52-552-1 in those games while totaling 70-plus yards in three of his first eight contests. Waller will turn 32 shortly after the season begins. Clearly, on the back nine of his career, even if he does opt to play in 2024, he’s a long way off from being the player we saw in 2019 and 2020.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    The New York Post reports Darren Waller is “still undecided” on whether or not he will continue his playing or opt to retire.
    After previous reports from the New York Post that Waller has committed to returning to the Giants for the 2024 season, Waller came out and said, “I have not made a decision either way.” Waller is due to make $10.5 million in base salary this season and is not expected to be amongst Giants cap casualties according to the New York Post. The veteran tight end will turn 32 early into next season, and has missed 19 games over the last three years due to injuries. Waller posted a receiving line of 52-552-1 last season, but his 10.6 YPR was his lowest since he emerged as a full-time starter in 2019 with the Raiders.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    The New York Post reports Darren Waller considered retirement after the 2023 season.
    Waller, 31, “expressed to individuals in the Giants organization that he was contemplating retirement” after another injury-marred season in which he managed just one touchdown on 52 catches over 11 games. Waller has since committed to returning to the Giants in 2024. He’ll make $10.5 million in base salary and count as a $14 million salary cap hit for the team. The big-framed Waller — constantly battling hamstring injuries — is at best a red zone weapon after slowing down in recent seasons.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    Darren Waller caught 5-of-6 targets for 45 yards in the Giants’ Week 18 win over the Eagles.
    Finishing as TE13 on a points per game basis isn’t the worst thing in the world, but for a player like Waller and where he was drafted, it was disappointing at best. Waller missed five games this season due to a hamstring injury, something he struggled with in 2022 as well. With a combination of injuries and a quarterback carousel, Waller topped 55 receiving yards just three times this season in the 12 games that he played. According to Spotrac, the Giants have a potential out on Waller’s contract entering the 2024 season and could be at a crossroads on where they are as a franchise. A rebuild could possibly exclude Waller, but has proven he can still play at a decently high level when healthy. Waller finishes with 52 receptions, 552 yards and a touchdown.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    Darren Waller caught 5-of-6 targets for 51 yards in the Giants’ Week 17 loss to the Rams.
    Both Waller’s five catches and 51 yards are his highest marks since Week 7. Most of his time between then and now has been spent nursing an injury, but it’s still a sign of improvement for the veteran tight end. He did, however, cede four catches to backup Daniel Bellinger. Waller will rank as a high-end TE2 for his Week 18 finale versus the Eagles.
  • NYG Tight End #12
    Darren Waller caught 2-of-5 targets for 32 yards in the Giants’ Week 16 loss to the Eagles.
    Waller shared tight end targets with Daniel Bellinger, getting five of the ten total targets. He nearly corralled two touchdowns, with a first quarter drop and fourth quarter underthrow negating big plays. Waller recorded his first reception in the fourth quarter and finished with two catches, adding to a frustrating fantasy season. He is a TE2 against the Rams in Week 17.