Giants could benefit from the addition of Darren Waller

It was not Joe Namath guaranteeing victory in Super Bowl III and it will not be Willis Reed limping out of the tunnel before Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals.

However, Darren Waller’s potential return to a Giants squad in the midst of an improbable playoff push does not have to be historically resonant in order to be significant.

Even if he is somewhat limited.

“Probably not 100% of the workload,” the tight end said after practice Friday in response to a question about how much playing time he expects to receive Sunday in New Orleans against the Saints.

Waller has not played since the 13-10 loss to the Jets on Oct. 29 because of a hamstring injury, but he did participate in practice Thursday and Friday.

“[He] did some good things,” Brian Daboll said when asked how Waller looked Thursday. “[He’ll] do some more today and [we’ll] see where he’s at.”

The notoriously tight-lipped coach would not tip his hand when he was asked a few moments later if Waller can play Sunday.

“[We’ll] know more after today’s practice,” Daboll said.

Evidently, Waller’s performance engendered enough confidence with the coaching and medical staffs to upgrade his status to questionable on the team’s injury report.

Which could be a boost for the Giants, who enter Sunday’s must-win game with a 5-8 record but have won three straight to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Reinserting Waller in the lineup would give Tommy DeVito a pass-catching threat. Waller, who has caught 36 passes for 384 yards and one touchdown, ranks second on the team in catches and receiving yards and is third in receiving touchdowns.

But those numbers were compiled catching passes from Daniel Jones. Surely there will be a learning curve with DeVito, yes?

According to Waller, no.

“It was natural,” Waller said in response to a question about catching passes from DeVito. “He knows where to put it. He’s got good timing. Good rhythm. He throws a good, catchable ball. It’s not hard to catch. It’s pretty seamless, honestly.”

The fact that Waller seems to be in sync with DeVito is a positive. So, too, is the fact that he was physically able to participate in drills with his teammates.

“It [was] a good week so [we’ll] see how it goes for Sunday. I was able to do everything asked of me in practice,” said Waller, who later expounded on what he did.

Aside from participating in running plays,  ''some intermediate stuff, crossers,” Waller said. “A little bit [of] stuff deeper down the field.”

All of which will be beneficial for an offensive attack whose  average of 152.1 passing yards per game is last in the NFL and whose average of 267 total yards per game is 31st.

Waller believes the Giants will limit how much he will play against New Orleans (6-7), a team that is making a playoff push of its own.

“It’ll be a certain number of reps they’re looking at as far as a pitch count,” Waller said. “I don’t know if it’d be [in] certain situations of the game. Just [have] to figure it out, but it would probably be a lot less than 100%.”