Darren Waller is one of the most important players on the roster for the Raiders. His presence in the middle of the field will cause massive mismatches for the entire offense for Las Vegas. There isn’t a player in the NFL that can stop him one on one.
However, injuries are now holding him back. Last season, Waller was banged up and it caused his production to drop. He missed several games near the end of the season and didn’t quite look the same when he returned. And unfortunately, he is battling an injury once again.
According to Tashan Reed of The Athletic, Waller missed practice again on Monday. That means he hasn’t practiced at all this month. Here is what Reed had to say about Waller’s absence:
“Tight end Darren Waller, however, remains out. He hasn’t practiced since July 30 — with the exhibition game and off days, that’s only three missed practices so far — but McDaniels hasn’t been willing to give specifics on his absence or any of the other players who have missed practice.”
The Raiders aren’t expected to play any of their key starters again this week, so don’t look for Waller to see the field on Sunday. But if he fails to practice at all this week, it might be time to get concerned as that would mean that he would have missed two full weeks of reps. It’s something to keep an eye on this week.