Waller to Still Hold a Prominent Role in New Offense

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller discussed his initial thoughts on the team's revised offense.

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller took the league by surprise in the 2019 and 2020 seasons, when he led Las Vegas in total receiving yards.

Waller and Kansas City's Travis Kelce were the only two tight ends to rank in the top 15 in the league both seasons.

Another big season was expected of Waller in 2021 after he was selected to his first-ever Pro Bowl, but unfortunately for the veteran tight end, knee, and back injuries would hold him back throughout the season.

Now, the 29-year-old is healthy and practicing in what will be a new offense under Coach Josh McDaniels and offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi. 

Waller said he's looking forward to what the offense has in store for him when he spoke to the media following Tuesday's practice.

"I'm excited," Waller said. "[The playbook] is asking me to do a lot of things. We watch a lot of tape of Rob Gronkowski running wild from just old New England clips and stuff like that. So it's exciting to see different ways that I'll be used. I'm very excited about it. It's a challenging system, but I love a good challenge."

Waller has been the focal point of many defenses in recent years, but opponents will now have to deal with arguably the best wide receiver in the game, Davante Adams, and one of the league's most underrated offensive threats, Hunter Renfrow.

"If they keep double-teaming me, that's fine," Waller said. "Single-cover Davante Adams if you want to -- or Hunter Renfrow. So yeah, I feel like it helps us out; we can all complement off each other. 

"I feel like someone like Josh Jacobs, and Kenyan [Drake], and Ameer [Abdullah], and guys like that will benefit off that too because [if] they want to play a lot of zone, it opens up things in the run game. So I feel like it allows the entire offense to complement off each other when somebody demands attention."

With four years as a Raider under his belt, Waller said he's beginning to embrace a leadership role on his own terms.

"There's a story that I was told -- it's like wolves," Waller said. "It's like how a wolf can lead from the back. You don't always have to be in the front like giving the speech and being like Ray Lewis to be a leader. Because I'm more quiet than that; I'm a little more reserved."

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