What the Dolphins Are Getting with Darren Waller

Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve got our guy at tight end, and it is none other than former New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller, a move no one saw coming out of left field. This addresses a key need for the Miami Dolphins in the 2025 season and provides the Dolphins with something they have been lacking: a reliable tight end. I will not waste any time and outline three reasons why getting him on the Dolphins means for them. So let us take a Deep End Dive into the Dolphins’ recent acquisition of Darren Waller.

Potential To Regain His Former Glory

When Darren Waller was with the Las Vegas Raiders, specifically, he had two separate thousand-yard seasons in 2019 and 2020. He has the potential to thrive in this cheat motion offense under Mike McDaniel, similar to Jonnu Smith when he was with the Dolphins last season. He should have the ability to get open with the two stud wide receivers, Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill. That right there is huge for this offense,e and he is going to get going if he can get enough targets.

Now that he is thirty-three years old, we will see if age catches up to him or if he can regain his former glory in his days with the then-Oakland Raiders. Coincidentally, Frank Smith, the offensive coordinator for the Dolphins, will be reunited with Waller. Smith was the tight ends coach for the Raiders from 2018 to 2020, during which Waller was with the Team. So we will see if Waller will regain his form under this offense or if he is a shadow of his former self.

Low Risk High Reward

For the price, Darren Waller is a low-risk, high-reward type of player, especially considering his age. He is a serviceable tight end for this team, though my concern is similar to Jonnu Smith’s, that he will outplay his contract and then ask for more money. That all depends on the situation he is in with the team. It all depends on how he performs at his age, considering what I mentioned in the previous segment. The low risk is if he does not want to play, but the high reward is getting Darren Waller for old. That is what the Dolphins are getting out of Darren Waller.

Still Room For More Moves

The Miami Dolphins can still make some additional moves due to acquiring Darren Waller at the price they did. My only concern with getting, say, Kyle Pitts, was getting him for a good price, and the asking price for him would have been out of the Dolphins reach. That is why, in my opinion, they acquired Darren Waller. They still do need to make moves especially at the defensive back position and who knows in the coming days they may make a move or two to be able to compete with the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East and also the “elite” teams in the National Football League and that requires a lot of factors for them to compete at the highest level.

The two names that stand out to me are, of course, Rasul Douglas and Asante Samuel Jr, both of whom were linked to the Dolphins. Though the priority one currently is to make more moves, mainly to get Zach Sieler extended and possibly Jordyn Brooks. However, I view the Darren Waller move as a possibility to make more moves since they acquired him for a relatively low price.

The Darren Waller Move-In Summary

So, how does this sum up the Darren Waller trade? It sums it up because of the potential to thrive in the offense, mostly because of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. It is a low-risk, high-reward move mainly because of the price that they got him for, which was for a 2026 sixth-round pick, mind you.

Lastly, it sums it up because of the ability to still make prominent moves to get Sieler extended. There is no doubt that Darren Waller is what he is at this point in his life, but can he come in and make an impact right away? We will have to see how he does in training camp later this month to find out.