Darren Waller's status as a key player on the Las Vegas Raiders seems to be dwindling with the emergence of Hunter Renfrow and the Davante Adams trade. However, new head coach Josh McDaniels is making sure he remains a key target for Derek Carr by teaching him how to be like Rob Gronkowski.

Waller said that McDaniels is having him watch tape on Gronkowski during his prime years. The Raiders' star tight end said that he enjoys the challenge, per Myles Simmons of ProFootballTalk.

“It’s asking me to do a lot of things,” Waller said in his press conference. “We’ve watched 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. And, yeah, I’m very excited about it. It’s a challenging system. But I love a good challenge. I think it’s bringing the best out of us.”

Becoming as dominant as Gronkowski is a monumental challenge but Waller can still have as big of an impact as almost any tight end. The Raiders' 2020 Pro Bowler recorded over 1,100 receiving yards and at least 90 catches in his two seasons prior to 2021, when he recorded 665 yards and 55 catches in 11 games.

Although his catch percentage went down to 59.1 percent after posting above 76.9 and 73.8 percent in his most dominant seasons, he is still a very talented player. Darren Waller could be the X-factor that makes the Raiders offense simply good or truly elite in the 2022 campaign. McDaniels said that he is excited to work with Waller. Giving him such a huge task shows his belief in him.