Darren Waller is the starting tight end for the Las Vegas Raiders, and the great-grandson of jazz pianist Fats Waller. He grew up playing wide receiver at North Cobb High School, and committed to Georgia Tech as a 3 star recruit. In his junior season, he earned a starting role. In 10 games, he posted 26 receptions for 442 yards and 6 touchdowns. While he produced mostly below average college stats, he finished his career averaging 19 yards per reception. Following this, he decided to opt out of his senior season and enter the 2015 NFL draft.
Darren Waller’s athleticism shined like a diamond during the combine. He ran a 4.46 second 40 time, which is best-in-class size-adjusted speed when considering his 6-6 and 255-pound frame with an 80.5 inch wingspan. Normally this would produce a high capital player, but Waller’s off the field issues and 3 suspensions at Georgia Tech caused him to slip to the end of the 6th round to the Ravens, signing Waller to a 4 year contract. Three weeks into his rookie season, he was placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season with a hamstring strain. In July of 2016, he was suspended four games by the NFL for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. He did not play much when he returned, earning a 5.2-percent target share. The following offseason, he was suspended for one year violating the substance abuse policy. After courageously overcoming his battle with substance abuse, he was reinstated to the NFL. The Ravens released him and re-signed him to the practice squad.
On November 26, 2018, the Raiders signed Waller off of the Raven’s practice squad. In his three games, he earned a 21.5-percent snap share and dropped 0 passes on 23 routes run. During the 2019 offseason, the Raiders were featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks, where he told the world his story.
Once at an undrafted ADP, Waller was rapidly popularized and began to receive buzz while lighting up training camp. He would go on to earn a 25.5-percent air yards share and 1146 receiving yards in a monstrous campaign across the board. He followed that season with even more impressive next gen stats, earning a 90.6-percent snap share and leading the league in receptions, yards after catch, and deep balls. He finished the season with a TE2 fantasy ranking. 2021 was a disappointment for fans and fantasy managers, as Waller dealt with health issues all season. Yet still, he dominated targets when he was on the field, with an alpha-level 24.2-percent target share. With Waller’s age and injury history, one has to wonder how many elite seasons he has left.
