Tag: Darren Waller

Giants’ Darren Waller activated from IR, Bobby McCain waived

The New York Giants have activated tight end Darren Waller from injured reserve (IR) and waived veteran safety Bobby McCain.

The New York Giants officially activated tight end Darren Waller from injured reserve (IR) on Saturday, just days removed from his designation to return.

Waller took part in two practices this week and should have a limited role on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

“I’ve been used to doing is like 70-80 snaps a game. So, coming out the first week, probably not that but as far as a number that’s solid that can contribute in whatever ways he needs me to contribute but also be fresh, assuming that’s realistic but yeah, I plan on contributing given the opportunity,’ Waller told reporters this week.

In order to clear room for Waller on the 53-man roster, the Giants waived veteran safety Bobby McCain (no recall).

McCain was signed during the offseason to compete at safety but has been largely relegated to special teams. He had taken just 19 defensive snaps in comparison to 119 special teams snaps.

In Monday night’s stunning upset of Green Bay, McCain had a punt go off his arm which was subsequently recovered by the Packers.

“Just got to get out of the way. It’s kind of hard, you got a high, short punt,” special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey said. “I think it was just one of those deals where Bobby (McCain) was about to react and as soon as he was about to react, the ball hit him. And you see guys kind of moving away from it, but you just hope that he can react quicker and maybe be a little more animated as a punt returner just alerting the guys, letting them know.”

The Giants did not make any practice squad elevations ahead of their Week 15 game.

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Giants activate pass-catching tight end Darren Waller (hamstring) vs. Saints

The Giants activated pass-catching tight end Darren Waller (hamstring) for Week 15’s game with the Saints. He’s torched Dennis Allen’s defense before:

This could be a problem. The New York Giants will activate tight end Darren Waller (hamstring) from injured reserve and dress him for Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, putting one of the league’s best pass-catching tight ends up against a defense that has struggled to defend them.

And Waller has torched Dennis Allen’s squad before. He caught a dozen passes against nine different Saints defenders back in 2020 with the Raiders, gaining 103 yards and scoring a crucial touchdown reception in a win for Las Vegas. He may be slowed by this hamstring issue, but Waller hadn’t lost a step prior to it — he missed five games and still ranks second-best on the Giants’ roster in catches (36) and yards (384).

So he’s going to be a challenging matchup for New Orleans. The Saints have allowed a combined 26 receptions, 329 receiving yards, and 4 touchdown catches to tight ends Cole Kmet, T.J. Hockenson, and Sam LaPorta in recent games. Waller is cut from the same cloth. Hopefully Allen has done a better job preparing his defense this week.

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Giants vs. Saints: 5 biggest storylines for Week 15

The New York Giants face the New Orleans Saints in Week 15. Here are the five biggest storylines to follow for this contest.

The New York Giants (5-8) travel down to The Big Easy to face the New Orleans Saints (6-7) in a suddenly important matchup between two NFC playoff hopefuls on Sunday afternoon.

Here are five storylines to follow in Week 15.

Giants’ Evan Neal doubtful vs. Saints in Week 15

The New York Giants have listed RT Evan Neal (ankle) as doubtful to play against the New Orleans Saints in Week 15.

The New York Giants wrapped up their week of practice on Friday and are about as healthy as they’ve been all season.

The one lingering health issue is that of right tackle Evan Neal, who’s still dealing with an ankle injury. And while he did return to practice this week, head coach Brian Daboll says he is doubtful to play on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

Daboll would not commit to Neal reassuming his role as the starter once he does return.

The other question facing the Giants is the status of tight end Darren Waller, who was designated to return from injured reserve (IR) on Thursday. Daboll says a decision on the veteran will be made over the next 24 hours.

Waller ultimately expects to be activated and play.

Full injury reports for both the Giants and Saints can be found below:

Giants injury report: Darren Waller designated to return from IR

The New York Giants have designated TE Darren Waller to return from injured reserve (IR) and he could play on Sunday vs. New Orleans.

The New York Giants returned to practice on Thursday — their first full practice of the week — and the first order of business was a significant one.

Just prior to taking the field, the team announced that tight end Darren Waller (hamstring) had been designated to return from injured reserve (IR). If all goes well, he could see a few snaps on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

Waller indicated on Wednesday that he was close to a return but was just awaiting the green light from trainers.

In other positive news, every single player on the active roster participated on at least a limited basis for the second straight day. All have a chance to play in Week 15 — right tackle Evan Neal included.

The Giants’ full Thursday injury report can be found below:

Did not participate: N/A

Limited participant: OL Evan Neal (ankle), CB Cor’Dale Flott (shoulder), NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), DL A’Shawn Robinson (hamstring/finger), LB Isaiah Simmons (ankle), TE Darren Waller (hamstring)

Full participant: WR Parris Campbell (knee), LB Azeez Ojulari (shoulder)

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Darren Waller designated to return from injured reserve ahead of Saints vs. Giants

Darren Waller is making progress, but his status for Week 15 is still in the air. Who has led the tight end room in his absence?

There have been conversations around New York Giants tight end Darren Waller making his return from injured reserve this weekend against the New Orleans Saints, though he last played on Oct. 29 versus the New York Jets before missing the next five games with a hamstring injury.

Waller of course would like to play, but he’s yet to be activated from injured reserve, though his 21-day window opened on Thursday. He can return to practice but it’s too soon to say for certain whether he’ll play on Sunday. For right now, it seems the Saints will dodge Waller.

That’s welcome news for New Orleans. Waller only played in eight games this season but he still ranks second in receptions (36) and receiving yards (384) for Big Blue. And the Saints have not performed well against tight ends to say the least, so Waller’s potential return is one to watch. Look at some of these final receiving lines from recent matchups against pass-catching tight ends:

  • Week 9 vs. Chicago Bears: Cole Kmet 6 catches for 55 yards, 2 touchdowns
  • Week 10 vs. Minnesota Vikings: T.J. Hockenson 11 catches for 134 yards, 1 touchdown
  • Week 13 vs. Detroit Lions: Sam LaPorta 9 catches for 140 yards, 1 touchdown

If he can go he would play a limited role, but he could still be dangerous with a small amount of snaps. If he can’t play, Daniel Bellinger has been the leading tight end since Waller’s injury. Bellinger has averaged 2.2 catches and 27.6 receiving yards per game over the last five games. Saints quarterback Derek Carr knows Waller’s strengths well from their time together on the Raiders, and he’s gashed New Orleans before. We’ll keep an eye out for his progress at Giants practice this week.

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Giants’ Darren Waller expects to return from IR soon

New York Giants TE Darren Waller (hamstring) says he’s feeling better and expects to return from injured reserve (IR) soon.

New York Giants tight end Darren Waller has been on injured reserve (IR) since November 4 with a hamstring issue and has not played since the team’s October 29 overtime loss to the Jets.

Waller’s 21-day practice window has always been believed to begin this week but head coach Brian Daboll said on Wednesday that he’s not quite ready yet.

While Waller is itching to return, he doesn’t intend to rush it. Still, he believes he’s close.

“Just a matter of them opening up the window and I’ll be bat practice,” he told reporters. “So whenever that is, I’ll be out there.”

When Waller does make his return, he doesn’t expect to receive the full bulk of the snaps initially. He’ll likely be eased back into the thick of things.

“I mean, definitely like what I want to do, and what I’ve been used to doing is like 70-80 snaps a game,” he said. “So, coming out the first week, probably not that but as far as a number that’s solid that can contribute in whatever ways he needs me to contribute but also be fresh, assuming that’s realistic but yeah, I plan on contributing given the opportunity.”

Waller’s presence would be a huge help to DeVito and the Giants’ offense. He is still among the team’s receiving leaders despite playing in only eight of the team’s 13 games. He has caught 36 of 52 targets for 384 yards and one touchdown.

His replacements — Daniel Bellinger and Lawrence Cager — have only combined for 18 receptions for 187 yards and a score.

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Giants injury report: Evan Neal returns to practice

New York Giants RT Evan Neal returned to practice on Wednesday, while four others, including NT Dexter Lawrence, were limited.

The New York Giants returned to the practice field on Wednesday following a stunning Week 14 upset of the Green Bay Packers.

Given that the Giants played on Monday night, they were limited to a walkthrough on Wednesday. They will have full practices on both Thursday and Friday before traveling down to New Orleans on Saturday.

The positive news opening Week 15 is that the team sustained no new injuries against Green Bay. Everyone on the active roster, right tackle Evan Neal included, participated in the walkthrough on at least a limited basis.

Unfortunately, there was also some negative news.

Daboll revealed that the 21-day window for tight end Darren Waller, who is currently on injured reserve (IR), was not opened. He did not practice on Wednesday and seems unlikely to play on Sunday against the Saints unless there is a drastic change in 24 hours.

“We’ll see where we’re at here, making progress. Getting closer,” Daboll said of Waller.

The Giants’ full (projected) Wednesday injury report can be found below:

Did not participate: N/A

Limited participant: OL Evan Neal (ankle), CB Cor’Dale Flott (shoulder), NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), LB Azeez Ojulari (shoulder), DL A’Shawn Robinson (hamstring/finger)

Full participant: WR Parris Campbell (knee)

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Giants injury report: Dexter Lawrence continues to miss practice

New York Giants NT Dexter Lawrence and RT Evan Neal are still missing practice but Brian Daboll says Dex is getting closer to a return.

The New York Giants returned from their bye week on Monday and took the practice field on Tuesday ahead of a Week 14 game against the Green Bay Packers.

The big question was the status of quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who was designated to return from injured reserve (IR), but that ultimately didn’t matter.

Prior to practice, head coach Brian Daboll officially named Tommy DeVito the starting quarterback for the clash on Monday Night Football.

Meanwhile, despite the team’s extended break, nose tackle Dexter Lawrence and right tackle Evan Neal continue to miss practice.

“He’s getting better,” Daboll said of Lawrence. “I think we’ll have him out here soon — soon might be this week.”

If there was any positive news to be had, it’s that tight end Darren Waller, who is eligible to come off of IR but has not yet had his 21-day window opened, is making progress. However, it remains unlikely he will play in Week 14.

“Waller’s making progress, as of today not ready yet,” Daboll said. “It’s too early right now. I’d probably lean more no than yes, but I don’t want to rule it out.”

The Giants’ full (projected, non-official) Tuesday injury report can be found below:

Did not participate: NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), OL Evan Neal (ankle)

Limited participant: N/A

Full participant: N/A

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Giants’ Darren Waller, Tyrod Taylor inching closer to returns

The New York Giants could see the returns of both QB Tyrod Taylor and TE Darren Waller following the bye week.

One of the biggest obstacles faced by the New York Giants this season has been injuries. The offensive line took a hit early in the season, leading to so many quarterback hits and sacks that the Giants are using a third-string, undrafted rookie free agent as the starter.

That’s not the only area of the field to be decimated by injuries, but it has had the biggest impact.

Two of the Giants’ missing pieces could return after the bye, though, and they are quarterback Tyrod Taylor and tight end Darren Waller.

“I’d say they’re getting better. We’ll see where they’re at. I haven’t talked to the medical guys yet, but they’ve been getting better,” head coach Brian Daboll said of Taylor and Waller on Monday.

Following his answer, Daboll was asked if they could return after the bye week, “We’ll see. Yeah, we’ll see.”

Taylor and Waller last suited up for the Giants on October 29 against the New York Jets. Waller was targeted twice, bringing in one reception for four yards before leaving with a hamstring injury.

Taylor lasted a little bit longer, completing four of seven attempted passes for eight yards, getting sacked twice, while rushing five times for 33 yards before leaving the game with a rib cage injury.

Presumably, Taylor will regain the starting quarterback position when he returns, but nothing has been announced. In fact, Daboll was quite mum on the quarterback situation, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out.

The Giants next face the Green Bay Packers on December 11.

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