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Darren Waller of the Las Vegas Raiders has emerged as one of the top tight ends in the league. If you ask teammate Derek Carr, the Raiders quarterback believes there is literally no one better in the business than Waller.
Carr has nothing but high praise for his teammate, and the Raiders quarterback recently described why he believes Waller is able to stand out from the rest of the pack:
“Whenever you know you have a guy that it’s man-to-man coverage and you know he can win, you can confidently, against any blitz, take your drop, step up and throw him the ball,” Carr said Wednesday, via Josh Dubow of AP Sports. “The knowledge that before you take that snap, you know you have a guy that can win like that, it makes all the difference in the world. You can play more confidently at the position.”
We see no lies here.
On Sunday against a hapless New York Jets side, Waller came out with a performance of a lifetime, catching 13-of-17 targets for an amazing 200-yard gain and two touchdowns. This inspired showing allowed the 27-year-old Raiders tight end to enter the history books by becoming just the sixth tight end in NFL history to hit the 200-yard receiving mark in a single contest.
Carr then made his bold declaration:
“The dude is unbelievable,” Carr said. “He gets the credit because the fantasy stat people love him, but especially on stuff like that, he doesn’t get nearly enough credit for what he can do in the run and pass game protection-wise. He’s the complete package. I think he’s the best in the league.”
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce likely has something to say about this last declaration. As good as Waller is, Kelce is second in the NFL in receiving yards with 1,114, behind only DK Metcalf. The Chiefs tight end also has eight touchdowns and recently made history by becoming the first tight end ever with five 1,000-yard seasons.
Still, Waller is definitely up there in terms of the best tight ends. The Raiders tight end trails only Kelce in receiving yards among tight ends with 742, and he has seven touchdowns of his own.
Waller and Co. will be back in action on Sunday as the 7-5 Raiders take on the Indianapolis Colts. This should be another opportunity for Waller to build on what has been a tremendous campaign for him thus far.