Why the Giants Love New Tight End Darren Waller

Here's why members of the New York Giants are so excited by new tight end Darren Waller's presence.

You've probably heard the old cliche, "Iron sharpens iron," right? Well, replace "iron" with New York Giants tight end Darren Waller's name, and the sentiment holds.

Waller, all 6-foot-6 and 238 pounds of him, is the first player on offense to generate the kind of buzz that one would last have to go back to the days of receiver Odell Beckham Jr to find: a guy who legitimately can make both sides of the ball that much better.

In Waller, quarterback Daniel Jones has himself a big-time target who, when healthy, is one of the best tight ends in the league.  

"He can do a lot. He's a tough matchup for people, for defenses, with a guy who can run like that with that kind of size, and how you play him in man and account for him in zone coverages," said quarterback Daniel Jones.

The Giants are no doubt envisioning a scenario in which Waller can become their version of Travis Kelce, a big-bodied receiver who can draw defenders into the middle of the field to open things up for the receivers on the outside. 

"He definitely gives something for a defense to worry about or to game plan for, and we can move him around and put him in different spots," Jones said. "Just a super versatile player. He can run. He can run every route. Catches the ball well, great body control. He's been really fun to work with. A really smart guy. He's picked up things quickly too."

Head coach Brian Daboll agreed.

"He's a true pro," he said of Waller. "He's been really good for us in the meeting rooms. Gives good input. Good communicator. Has some leadership skills. He's been a good guy to work with."

Waller has come in with an open mind, ready to embrace the fresh start he's been given since the Giants acquired him via trade from the Raiders. He declined to put himself in a box when asked to describe himself, instead just calling himself a "football player" ready to do whatever was required of him.

 And so far, he's loving the challenges of the Giants offense.

"It requires you to know everything that's going on on the field, not just have yourself fixed in one spot like you need to know the whole picture of the offense," Waller said. "Why the quarterback's looking in a certain direction, why you need to be in a certain window at a certain time. It forces you to move fast, think fast, and I love challenges. That’s what I like the most about it."

That and also having a piece of ownership in the process.

"Yeah, they value our opinions here," he said with a smile. "I feel like a lot of places I've gone, you're told to do things a certain way, and you do those things. But here, they ask a lot of questions. They want to know what you're thinking, what you like to do more. So, to offer input is cool because coach and players have to be in partnership. We're all together. We shouldn't be clashing with each other. We're all going in the same direction."

Waller's presence won't just make the offense better this year. It should also help the defense, which has been inconsistent when covering opposing tight ends, sharpen their game.

"He's a threat on the field," said inside linebacker Bobby Okereke He's a playmaker. He's big. He's strong, he's fast. He's a good player."

Safety Xavier McKinney agreed, noting that Waller's presence puts a lot of pressure on a defense.

"He's one of the best tight ends in the league," McKinney said. "Obviously, it's a lot of pressure just him being out there on the field. You can feel his presence. Like I said, you've got to be aware of where he's at. He's able to make plays inside, outside, against the corner, against the safety--it doesn't matter."

 At times, Jones, who is normally stoic when addressing the media, couldn't hide his giddiness over his new teammate.

 I think it feels like you hear about most guys, or you see them in the program, and they're listed at 6'6", and they're really like 6'4" or 6'5". He's a true 6'6". He's a true 250-260 and can fly and run all the routes. He's just an impressive athlete," Jones said.

"He’s just been locked in. You can tell it's important to him. He's put a lot of effort into learning the stuff and getting caught up. It’s been fun working with him."

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