Is Waller Debut on the Horizon?

Miami Dolphins tight end Darren Waller has yet to take part in a practice with his new team.

Miami Dolphins tight end Darren Waller | Alain Poupart/Miami Dolphins On SI

Darren Waller's much-anticipated practice debut with the Miami Dolphins apparently is coming soon.

Head coach Mike McDaniel provided an update on Waller's status before practice Wednesday morning, and while he didn't offer a specific target date, his comments suggested the tight end's first appearance should come sooner rather than later.

McDaniel said Waller's practice debut was complicated a bit by the Dolphins' schedule of joint practices Friday with the Chicago Bears and next Wednesday and Thursday with the Detroit Lions — because joint practices are significantly more intense than regular practices.

"It's looking about, it's a little tricky because you're bringing a guy back and is his first practice a joint practice?" McDaniel said. "So it's about a week, but it's a little tricky in terms of what practice and we'll feel our way through that. And, you know, you're just trying to trying to be smart with that."

Waller has been on the Physically Unable to Perform list since the start of training camp after the Dolphins acquired him in a trade with the New York Giants on July 1. Waller didn't play in 2024 after announcing his retirement and McDaniel said he needed to work his way back into football shape after deciding to make a comeback.

THE WALLER WATCH

Former Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets tight end Darren Waller on the sideline against the Miami Hurricanes in the first quarter at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field in 2024. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Assistant head coach and tight ends coach Jon Embree said Monday he believed Waller would need little time to get up to speed.

“The first thing that really impressed me about him is his ability to quickly grasp the offense,” Embree said. “He has a pretty good grasp of the details initially starting out. That's huge because that'll allow us to do more with him and move him around in the formations and all that.

“And then just his range, his catch radius. Probably not since Tony [Gonzalez] or Jordan Cameron had a guy that has that kind of radius as far as catching the ball.”

Waller, a 2015 sixth-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens, emerged as one of the league’s top tight ends during his time with the Las Vegas Raiders. He caught 90 passes for 1,145 yards and three touchdowns in 2019, then followed that with a career-best season of 107 receptions, 1,196 yards, and nine touchdowns.

He announced his retirement last June and missed the 2024 season after three straight years with fewer than 60 receptions. That said, the Dolphins don’t necessarily need Waller to match Jonnu Smith’s production, which included a team-high 88 receptions and eight touchdowns. 

“We’ll see what he’s going to bring to us,” Embree said. “I’m losing Jonnu, trying to replace that piece with [Waller], his pass-catching and his route-running ability. He's always been one of the better route runners in the league at that position.“

Still, he’ll need to prove he can sync up with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in Miami’s timing-based offense.

“I know they threw some, I believe, before camp,” Embree said. “It'll be important to get it going, obviously, sooner than later, but it's crazy because there's still a long way left in this journey.” 

Waller Starts Camp on PUP List

While Waller began building chemistry with Tagovailoa earlier this offseason, he opened training camp on the physically unable to perform list as he works his way back into football shape.

Miami’s Week 1 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts is still over a month away, so Embree isn’t overly concerned about him missing early reps in camp. 

“My main thing with [Waller] was just the grasp of the offense and understanding the nuances so that we can get that going because at the end of the day, him and Tua on a stick route, [they] should be able to do that in their sleep,” Embree said.

Until Waller’s ready to hit the practice field, Julian Hill, Pharaoh Brown, Tanner Conner, Hayden Rucci and newcomer Chris Myarick will get extended runs to make their case for a roster spot at tight end.