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This Date In Transactions History: Raiders Sign TE Darren Waller Off Ravens Practice Squad

November 26th, 2022 at 9:48am CST by Ben Levine

Thanks to hindsight, we’ll occasionally find that some of the NFL’s best transactions initially went under the radar. That was the case on this date in 2018, when the Raiders signed a little-known tight end/wide receiver off the Ravens’ practice squad. Fast forward to today, and that tight end is one of the highest-paid players at his position.

On November 26, 2018, the Raiders added tight end Darren Waller off the Ravens’ practice squad.

The 2015 sixth-round pick didn’t make a whole lot of noise during his first three-plus seasons in the NFL. Baltimore initially had Waller playing as a wide receiver, and the Georgia Tech product had 12 receptions through his first two years in the league. After being slapped with a four-game suspension in 2016, Waller was hit with a full-season ban in 2017 for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

That suspension proved to be the nail in the coffin for the wideout/tight end in Baltimore. After sitting out the 2017 campaign, he was cut at the end of the 2018 preseason. He later caught on with Baltimore’s practice squad, which where he spent the first chunk of the season. With rookies Hayden Hurst and Mark Andrews and veteran Maxx Williams firmly above Waller on the depth chart, it didn’t seem like the now-pass-catching TE had much of a future in Baltimore.

Then, on November 26, the Raiders came calling. The Raiders didn’t necessarily need a TE but believed in Waller’s pass-catching ability and immediately gave him a spot on the active roster. The tight end has six catches in four games while playing behind Pro Bowler Jared Cook.

The organization’s gamble worked out. Waller exploded in 2019 with Cook out of the picture, finishing the campaign with 90 receptions for 1,145 yards and three touchdowns. He followed that up with an even better season in 2020, as Waller earned his first Pro Bowl nod after finishing with 107 catches for 1,196 yards and nine scores. 2021 was a bit of a disappointment for the tight end; he was limited to only 11 games while hauling in 55 catches for 665 yards.

Still, the Raiders were clearly convinced that Waller’s 2019/2020 performances were sustainable, and they inked him to a three-year, $51MM extension this past offseason, making him the highest-paid tight end in the NFL in terms of average annual value. The 30-year-old is currently on injured reserve, and in five games this year, he’s collected only 16 catches. Considering the mounting absences and declining production, there have been some whispers that the Raiders are growing frustrated with the star.

Still, even if the Raiders grow to regret the extension they gave to Waller, there’s no denying the brilliance of the move they made on this date four years ago today.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/23/22

November 23rd, 2022 at 8:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves around the league:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

Thanksgiving will mark McKinley’s Cowboys debut after he signed to Dallas’ practice squad last week. The veteran will seek to be more productive in his reunion with Dan Quinn than his previous stops following the end of his Falcons tenure, while providing depth to a Cowboys edge group which has produced a league-leading 42 sacks this season.

Hobbs returning to the fold in the near future will be a welcomed sight for the Raiders’ secondary. The 2021 fifth-rounder was a full-time starter through the first five weeks of the season before landing on IR with a broken hand. Vegas has struggled against the pass, allowing more than 247 yards per game through the air in 2022. The team has three weeks to activate him before he becomes ineligible to play again this season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/19/22

November 19th, 2022 at 8:05pm CST by Ely Allen

The league’s minor moves leading up to gameday:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

  • Signed to active roster: TE Nick Muse
  • Promoted from practice squad: CB Tay Gowan
  • Waived: OLB Benton Whitley

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Washington Commanders

Raiders Not Considering Defensive Changes

November 18th, 2022 at 4:02pm CST by Adam La Rose

Part of the Raiders’ struggles this season has been an underwhelming performance by the team’s defense. Aside from a notable coaching decision made last week, though, no major changes with respect to players or coaches will be coming any time soon.

Las Vegas ranks 28th in the league in both total and scoring defense, despite a number of moves made in the offseason which led to heightened expectations the unit could at least effectively complement the Raiders’ talented array of skill-position players. That included bringing in Patrick Graham as defensive coordinator after he spent the past two seasons in the same capacity with the Giants.

One element of the team’s lackluster performance to date has been its pass rush. Despite having a starting edge tandem of Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones, the Raiders have registered a league-worst 10 sacks this season. The latter has accounted for just 0.5 of that total, a figure which marks a major disappointment relative to the $52.5MM deal he signed this offseason. Significant alterations to the rotation, or along the sidelines, are not being considered for the remainder of the season, however.

“What’s the alternative?” head coach Josh McDaniels said, via Tashan Reed of The Athletic (subscription required). “I think that’s our job to look at that and consider it that way, but I also think throwing things out there just because you’re frustrated with the results doesn’t necessarily mean that the results are going to change for the better at all. Matter of fact, they could get dramatically worse.”

Eyebrows were raised this past Sunday when three notable defenders were deactivated. Defensive linemen Clelin Ferrell, Matthew Butler and Neil Farrell were each healthy scratches for the team’s 25-20 loss to the Colts. Reed tweets that the decision was made as a result of an unspecified non-football matter.

Amidst the Raiders’ 2-7 campaign, questions have been raised about the commitment level of certain players, a list which may include Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller. McDaniels’ job security has also been a talking point in recent weeks, though owner Mark Davis emphatically put an end to speculation about a change being made in that regard in at least the intermediate future. The same will apparently hold true both on the field and the sidelines for the team’s defense.

Raiders Frustrated With TE Darren Waller?

November 14th, 2022 at 11:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Darren Waller emerged after four seasons off the NFL radar to become the Raiders’ centerpiece pass catcher, taking over after the franchise’s Antonio Brown– and Tyrell Williams-dependent plan failed. Waller has since signed two Raiders extensions. This season, however, has not featured much production or availability from the former comeback story.

The Pro Bowl tight end is now on IR due to a nagging hamstring injury. Prior to going on IR, Waller had not played since Week 5. He managed eight snaps against the Chiefs, before going down with what has become a season-defining malady. He and the Raiders may not be in lockstep regarding this injury, with Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal indicating Waller has become a source of frustration for the team.

Effort, or lack thereof, to return from this injury has created this wedge between the recently extended tight end and the team. An injury to his other hamstring during training camp — viewed by some as a hold-in measure amid contract talks — led to a prolonged absence. Waller, 30, returned in time for Week 1 but missed three full games prior to being placed on IR.

Other players have seen hamstring injuries flare up this season — most notably Keenan Allen, whose injury against the Raiders in Week 1 has led to the veteran Charger missing most of the year — and it is a bit premature to accuse Waller of not doing what it takes to return in time. But this Raiders season has skidded well off track; tension is mounting.

[RELATED: Packers Attempted To Acquire Waller At Deadline]

“Some of the things that a lot of us try to do just to practice, what we put our bodies through just to sleep at night, and for that to be the result of all that effort? It pisses me off,” Derek Carr said following the Raiders’ loss to the Colts, via The Athletic’s Vic Tafur. “It pisses a lot of guys off. It’s hard knowing what some guys are doing — like I said — just to practice, what they’re putting in their body just to sleep at night just so we can be there for each other, and I wish everybody in that room felt the same way about this place.”

Hammering this point home, Davante Adams also said not enough players are “fully bought in.” Neither player named Waller nor singled out anyone else. But the Raiders’ two highest-paid performers citing teammates for insufficient effort is obviously noteworthy. The Raiders are in the early stages of their Josh McDaniels–Dave Ziegler retooling effort. Attempting to quiet any McDaniels one-and-done rumors, Mark Davis said he is committed to his coach for 2023.

Waller’s three-year, $51MM deal — agreed to in September after the two-time 1,000-yard pass catcher had slipped nearly out of the top 20 for AAV at his position — tops the tight end market. But the contract included only $19.25MM fully guaranteed (ninth among tight ends). Waller’s new years do not begin until 2024, but the rest of his guarantees pay out by 2023. That gives the Raiders more flexibility than is usually afforded so soon into a top-market deal. Las Vegas has seen its top three pass catchers — Adams, Waller and Hunter Renfrow — play all of 62 snaps together this season, contributing to the team’s 2-7 record. Neither Renfrow nor Waller has fared well since signing their respective extensions.

It is too early to speculate on Waller’s place with the team beyond 2022, but the former Ravens draftee did well to secure more in guarantees before the hamstring injury dropped his value. A knee injury cost Waller a chunk of last season. If he comes off IR when first eligible (Week 14), Waller will have missed 13 games over the past two years. It will be interesting to see if Waller can return at that point and build some momentum for next season.

Eight Teams Attempted To Claim Jerry Tillery; DL Headed To Raiders

November 14th, 2022 at 5:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jerry Tillery did not work out with the Chargers, but a fourth of the league wanted to greenlight a contract-year audition. Eight teams attempted to claim the fourth-year defensive lineman, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). The Raiders won out.

In addition to Las Vegas, which now holds the No. 2 spot in the waiver order, the Lions, Panthers, Colts, 49ers, Jets, Giants and Chiefs submitted claims for the former first-round pick. Considering Tillery’s history, the interest is not too surprising. His midseason Bolts exit does make the claim volume notable, however.

Tillery, who follows defensive lineman John Cominsky in drawing eight waiver claims this year, is signed for the remainder of the season. The Chargers passed on Tillery’s fifth-year option in May and moved him out of the picture for good late last week. This number of interested teams does open the door to a potential market in free agency come March.

This marks yet another D-line addition for the Raiders, who restocked their front during the Dave Ziegler–Josh McDaniels regime’s first offseason. Bilal Nichols, Andrew Billings and rookies Matthew Butler and Neil Farrell comprise Las Vegas’ top interior D-line options. The Raiders had re-signed Jon Gruden-era pickup Johnathan Hankins but ended up trading him to the Cowboys before the deadline.

Chosen 28th overall out of Notre Dame in 2019, Tillery has 29 starts under his belt. He has tallied 10.5 career sacks and 12 tackles for loss in three-plus seasons. Tillery notched 14 quarterback hits during the 2020 and ’21 seasons. The new Bolts regime did not view him as much of a fit, signing Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Johnson in free agency and not picking up his 2023 option. Despite Johnson going down for the season, the Chargers followed through on ending Tillery’s tenure. With the Fighting Irish in 2018, Tillery recorded eight sacks to move onto the first-round radar.

Pro Football Focus rates Tillery just inside the top 50 among interior D-linemen this season; that mark is well north of the reviews the site gave from 2019-21. Tillery, 26, also finished his Chargers career having suffered a back injury while weightlifting. The Raiders and the septet of teams that did not end up landing him, however, were clearly unconcerned by that development. While the Raiders season has skidded off track, Tillery’s Silver and Black audition will be interesting.

Raiders Owner Endorses Josh McDaniels As 2023 Head Coach

November 14th, 2022 at 4:28pm CST by Adam La Rose

Yesterday saw the Raiders lose to the Colts in Jeff Saturday‘s NFL coaching debut. The result dropped Vegas to 2-7, and extended their losing streak to three games. Keeping in line with recent reporting on the matter, however, Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels is not in danger of being let go in the near future.

The first-year Vegas bench boss has been “given assurances” by owner Mark Davis that he will remain in his position through the balance of this season into 2023 (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Jeff Howe). That comes after calls for a coaching change picked up in recent weeks, as the team has habitually given up sizeable leads and struggled to find consistency on offense.

“I like Josh. I think he’s doing a fantastic job. That’s why I hired him,’ Davis said, via Ed Graney of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “We did an exhaustive search and found the person we believe is going to bring the Raiders to greatness.”

Vegas entered the season coming off of a surprise playoff berth, and moderate expectations given moves such as McDaniels’ hiring and the acquisition of wideout Davante Adams. While few projections had them contending to win the highly-regarded AFC West, the retool started this offseason with McDaniels as HC and fellow Patriots alumnus Dave Ziegler as GM was expected to produce better performances and results than the team has put together so far.

Davis added that he has “no issues” with McDaniels, who is reportedly on a four-year contract. The pair have routinely had postgame meetings with one another during the season, something which has occasionally fueled speculation that significant changes would be forthcoming. McDaniels did not make it through his second season during his previous HC stint with the Broncos – something which, of course, was followed by his last-minute backing out of the Colts’ job four years ago. Davis’ remarks certainly suggest that the 46-year-old will have a longer leash this time around.

McDaniels and the Raiders will next play the Broncos, a team which, at 3-6, has induced plenty of outcry regarding their own coaching hire from the offseason. Regardless of the outcome of that game, a long-term view is indeed being used in Vegas.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/12/22

November 12th, 2022 at 7:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are the minor roster moves in anticipation for Sunday’s slate of games:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Activated from IR: S Charles Washington
  • Promoted from practice squad: OL Rashaad Coward

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

  • Promoted from practice squad: TE Nick Muse

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Raiders Sign TE Jacob Hollister

November 10th, 2022 at 9:14pm CST by Ben Levine

The Raiders lost a pair of key players to injured reserve today, and the organization is now starting to fill in the open roster spots. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter), the Raiders have signed tight end Jacob Hollister off the Vikings practice squad.

[RELATED: TE Darren Waller To IR | WR Hunter Renfrow To IR]

The Raiders are also signing linebacker Curtis Bolton from their practice squad to the active roster, per Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus (on Twitter). Linebacker Reggie Ragland will be taking the open practice squad spot, according to ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter).

Hollister has bounced around the NFL a bit since going undrafted in 2017. In six professional seasons, the tight end has seen time in 59 games (12 starts), including a two-season stint in Seattle that saw him haul in 66 total catches. After spending much of the 2021 campaign in Jacksonville, Hollister joined the Raiders in March. He landed on IR before the end of the preseason and was later granted his release.

He later caught on with the Vikings’ practice squad and was promoted for a pair of games. With Darren Waller sidelined for at least the next four games, Hollister will likely see some playing time behind expected fill-in Foster Moreau.

Bolton has seen time in six games since the beginning of the 2021 season, including a single appearance for the Raiders earlier this season. His signing to the active roster comes on the heels of Blake Martinez‘s decision to retire earlier today. Ragland, a former second-round pick, started nine of his 17 games for the Giants in 2021. The 29-year-old has 279 tackles across five NFL seasons.

Raiders LB Blake Martinez To Retire

November 10th, 2022 at 1:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Blake Martinez has played four games with the Raiders this season. He has started two of those and was on the field for 91% of the Raiders’ defensive snaps against the Jaguars. The veteran linebacker has changed his plans since Sunday.

The seventh-year vet announced his retirement (via Instagram) on Thursday. Martinez spent time with the Packers, Giants and Raiders over the course of a successful career, one coming after he was drafted in the 2016 fourth round.

The Giants reached an agreement to keep Martinez this offseason, coming to terms on a restructured contract with the multiyear starter. Martinez, 28, had suffered an ACL tear during in 2021 and was entering the final season of a three-year, $30MM deal. The Giants reversed course on the high-priced inside ‘backer just before the season, releasing him and taking on some dead money in doing so.

While Martinez found a new home in Las Vegas, that partnership will end up being shortlived. The Raiders bumped Martinez up to their active roster not long after signing him to their practice squad. He recorded a game-high 11 tackles in his fourth and final game as a Raider, logging 63 defensive snaps against the Jags.

One of a few midround Packers draftees to be plugged in as a starting linebacker over the past several years, Martinez ended up starting 57 games with Green Bay. During his four-year run with the team, the Stanford product became one of the NFL’s most reliable sources of tackles. He racked up at least 144 stops from 2017-20, leading the league with 144 in 2017. He notched a career-high 155 in his 2019 contract year, providing a springboard to that $10MM-per-year Giants pact.

Martinez played for current Raiders DC Patrick Graham during much of his career. Graham was in Green Bay in 2018, working as the team’s linebackers coach, and was the Giants’ DC during Martinez’s two seasons in New York. Martinez joined James Bradberry as Giants big-ticket 2020 signings; each player helped Graham’s defense finish in the top 10 in points allowed. But Martinez’s early-season ACL tear in 2021 led to an early end to his Big Blue run.

For his career, Martinez totaled 706 tackles and 13 sacks. During that 2017-20 stretch, no one surpassed Martinez’s 594 tackles. Future Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner came closest, reaching 568.

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