Biding His Time? Raiders Delaying Waller Extension -

Despite being one of the league’s best, tight end Darren Waller is still waiting on a lucrative extension from the Raiders.

As the Las Vegas Raiders continue to build their team from a “win now” point of view, the team’s strategies and transactions shift towards the short term. Since Davante Adams’ and Hunter Renfrow’s contracts both run at least four years each, that is currently where the Raiders’ window for success stands. Darren Waller is still waiting.

Why The Delay?

Paying Adams and Renfrow seemed like something the Raiders front office could not have been happier to do, but it is a bit strange how the team is not coming off as eager to pay the third weapon of their arsenal: Darren Waller. Waller last signed a contract in 2019, a three-year extension that will carry through 2023, but rumblings regarding the near-revolutionary tight end wanting a longer commitment from the Raiders are getting louder. While 2021 was the first time he did not appear in every regular season game or reach 1,000 receiving yards in three years, it would be surprising for the Raiders to let him walk.

Time On His Side

In 2023, Waller will be 31, which is the same age which Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce signed his hefty four-year extension, proving that age may not be a major factor in the Raiders’ hesitancy. A wide receiver’s playstyle with a tight end’s build, Waller has been a matchup nightmare and a pass-oriented offense’s dream since joining the Raiders in 2019, and with the moves the Raiders have made around him, letting him go would not only be a mistake but a massive step back as well.

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by Full Press Coverage on March 25, 2023 at 12:09 am

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Irreplaceable

To certain degrees, many players can be defined as replaceable. While a speed-oriented player’s replacement may not be as fast, there will be someone that can come close enough to matching their 40-yard dash time. With Waller, however, Kyle Pitts may be the only player in the NFL with a similar arsenal of talent, and it is difficult to imagine a situation in which Waller walks and the Raiders go after Pitts.

Wealth Of Surrounding Talent

The Raiders have found themselves in a unique position in 2022, rostering the best wide receiver in the game in Davante Adams, an elusive, reliable slot receiver in Hunter Renfrow, and a unicorn at the tight end position in Darren Waller. But only the first two players are geared to go for the Silver and Black for two more years, and losing the third weapon creates an incredibly small window for success.

Historic Overview

Does Michael Jordan win six rings without Pippen and Rodman? Probably not, and the Raiders appear to be facing a similar situation. Breaking up their “Big Three” before things can truly get rolling would be crushing. Las Vegas has not been particularly stingy with their checkbooks this season, so it should not be the end of the world to lock in one of the best tight ends in the NFL for a few additional years.