Darren Waller honored to suit up for his first game as a Giant
Giants tight end Darren Waller stands on the sidelines during the second half of an NFL preseason game against the Panthers on Aug. 18 at MetLife Stadium. Credit: AP/Bryan Woolston
Entering his seventh NFL season, tight end Darren Waller still gets goose bumps.
“I’m excited man, just trying to stay within the day, you know?” the 30-year-old Waller told reporters Tuesday. “Every single individual day of practice leads to a good game on Sunday, so not trying to get too excited or peak before then. Just trying to keep building as the week goes.”
Sunday will be Waller’s first game in a Giants uniform.
It will not be his first experience with the NFC East.
“Like I’ve said before, growing up [my parents were] NFC East fans, so I know the history and I know how heated and competitive these games have been over the years. And I know what I’m about to step into on Sunday. I am honored to take the field.”
Given how strong Waller’s training camp was, the Giants are thrilled to have him.
He dominated many practices during training camp and developed strong chemistry with Daniel Jones.
Asked how he believes the Cowboys will defend him, Waller noted that they are a zone team on early downs but go to more man coverage on third down.
Traded to the Giants from the Raiders in March, Waller seems to be looking forward to the prime-time stage.
He said he played in two prime-time games early in the season while he was still with the Raiders. One game was against the Saints and the other against the Ravens.
“Those are the kind of environments that you want to play in,” Waller said. “You know everybody’s watching and playing against a really good team. I feel like it’s going to bring the best out of you pretty early on.”
Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.
More Giants
