It’s beginning to look like the New York Giants will, in fact, lose tight end Darren Waller to retirement.
Waller, 31, hasn’t attended any of the team’s voluntary workouts this offseason, according to several reports, including our own information, and ESPN is reporting here (Sources – Giants expecting TE Darren Waller to retire) that Waller has interest in a music career.
That would partially explain the decision of the Giants to draft Penn State tight end Theo Johnson in the fourth round – and why Johnson has taken first-team snaps this spring, although the Giants do have seven tight ends currently on their roster (which seems like a lot to this writer – Waller, Johnson, Daniel Bellinger, Lawrence Cager, Tyree Jackson, Chris Manhertz and Jack Stoll).
If the Giants cut Waller after June 1 (well, like, now, and stuff), they would save $11.9 million on this year’s salary cap, which would really help, since they currently have the lowest salary cap space of any of the NFL’s teams (less than $2 million). He lost $200,000 in bonus money by not coming to the spring workouts, and his salary this season is $10.525 million.
Fact is, Waller is productive – when he plays. He’s played only two seasons where he went over 12 games, and in those two seasons, he caught over 1,000 yards in each of them. His stops have been with the Oakland Raiders, of course, the Baltimore Ravens, and now the Giants. He’s had 350 catches for 4,124 yards and 20 touchdowns in 83 games throughout a nine-year career.
