Darren Waller officially retires from NFL, explains reason for decision

Darren Waller will not play football this fall as he’s officially ending his career. The Pro Bowl tight end went to social media on Sunday to announce his retirement from the NFL. Waller also explained why he’s retiring after playing in the league for nine seasons.

“I almost just lost my life,” Waller said in the video posted on his Instagram account. “I don’t know if I really feel like if I would have died that I would have felt great about how my life was going if I died at the time. I’m doing something that I found a lot of joy in and have had amazing moments with. But the passion has slowly been fading.

Darren Waller officially has announced his retirement from the NFL. pic.twitter.com/LECjWkSjAn

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 9, 2024

“I’ve made the decision that I’ll be retiring from the NFL. Eternally grateful for the game of football. I wouldn’t be able to have this conversation or to think things through or be self-reflective if it wasn’t for the opportunity to save my life and go to rehab which the NFL offered me.”

Waller added: “They also gave me an opportunity to re-establish myself and to come back into the world and do something productive, provide an example, be a leader, be a difference maker in my craft but also in the day-to-day wherever I go.”

New York Giants respond to Darren Waller’s retirement

Waller went on to thank the Baltimore Ravens, Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants for taking a chance on him. The video comes shortly after it was reported that Waller informed the Giants that he was planning to retire.

“We have great respect for Darren as a person and player. We wish him nothing but the best,” the Giants said in a statement.

Waller was selected by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft after playing four seasons at Georgia Tech. The NFL suspended the 31-year-old for the entire 2017 season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy for the second time.

In 2018, Waller signed with the Raiders and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2020 after catching 2017 passes for 1,196 yards and nine touchdowns. In 2023, Waller was traded to the Giants and caught 52 passes for 552 yards and one touchdown in 12 games. He finished his career with 350 receptions for 4,124 yards and 20 touchdowns in 86 games.

In March 2023, Waller married WNBA star Kelsey Plum. The couple filed for divorce in April of this year.