Waller has return worth waiting for with Dolphins with two touchdowns

Darren Waller retired from the NFL last year because he lost his joy, his feeling of childlike enthusiasm he felt about the sport to which he has dedicated most of his life. His debut with the Miami Dolphins on Monday was a return to the feeling he lost.

On fourth-and-goal from the 4-yard line in the first quarter of the Dolphins’ 27-21 win against the New York Jets, Waller ran the same route he ran to catch his first NFL touchdown way back in 2016 when he was a second-year wide receiver and former sixth-round pick just trying to scrape for any playing time he could get. He stuttered from his spot on the right side of the formation and then looped to the left, setting up in the back of the end zone where he could make the most of his 6-foot-6 frame. Tua Tagovailoa trusted Waller and Waller rewarded him, skying over a pair of defenders to catch his first touchdown in nearly two years.

At long last, Waller was back.

“It was just fun, man,” Waller said. “It felt like when I started playing football as a kid. I felt like I lost it sometimes, but, yeah, tonight was pretty cool.”

The catch was Waller’s second of the game and only the first of two touchdowns. In the third quarter, the 33-year-old hauled in another touchdown, this time off a designed rollout for Tagovailoa, who made an easy throw to Waller after the tight end outran New York safety Andre Cisco.

In his most recent season in the NFL, Waller caught just one touchdown. He needed fewer than three quarters in Miami Gardens to top that total, and he finished his debut with three catches for 27 yards and two touchdowns.

The long road back to the field was worth it for Waller and the Dolphins.

“I knew he was fully capable. I just didn’t want to overcook it,” coach Mike McDaniel said. It inspires me, and I think it inspires his teammates, a guy that has a love for the game of football and does the journey to get back.

“All he’s done is everything that he possibly can do to put his best foot forward, and he’s been a phenomenal contributor to our team. I think the guys have felt that he’s been doing everything he can to participate, and they were very confident when he was ready to go that he would be what we know him to be, so I think he’s a nice complement to our what we previously thought were height restrictions.”

Waller, who made the Pro Bowl in 2020, abruptly retired from the NFL in 2023 after spending one season with the Giants. A health scare, he said at the time, gave him clarity about his life and his passion for the game started to fade. Waller, who has battled addiction and depression, went through a publicized divorce and flirted with a music career. His lone season with the Giants was also somewhat underwhelming — he caught 52 passes for 552 yards and had only one touchdown in 11 games.

He could not, however, stay away from football for long. In July, Miami — looking for a new tight end after trading Jonnu Smith to the Steelers for star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick — traded for Waller, who decided to come out of retirement. A hip injury plagued Waller throughout the offseason, which delayed his return until Week 4, and yet the Dolphins (1-3) expected he would contribute as soon as he got onto.

He did — literally. On the third play from scrimmage, Miami faced a third-and-8 and Tagovailoa went to Waller, linking up with the former Pro Bowler on a crossing route for a 14-yard gain and first down to cross midfield. The Dolphins wound up kicking a field goal to go up 3-0 on the Jets (0-4) and never trailed.

On Miami’s next drive, Tagovailoa trusted Waller in another big spot, throwing a jump ball to Waller — a pass which might have sailed through the back of the end zone if intended for any other player on the roster — on fourth down to stretch the Dolphins’ lead to 10-0 in the first.

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve thrown the ball to dang near the goal post and somebody catches it like that,” Tagovailoa said, “so that’s the kind of guy that we have in Darren.”

Miami will need more games from Waller like his debut moving forward. In the third quarter, star wide receiver Tyreek Hill sustained a likely season-ending knee injury. Tagovailoa went just 5 of 9 for 52 yards the rest of the way — albeit with the Dolphins leading by two scores for most of the rest of the game, content to lean on their run game.

Still on his first pass after Hill went down, Tagovailoa went to a new favorite target. Three plays after Hill’s season likely ended, Waller caught his second touchdown pass to put Miami up 17-3.

“It’s really like the beginning chapters of us putting in reps together on the grass,” Waller said. “I feel like it’s just a guy like him just having faith and giving a guy like me a chance, and I’m grateful.”

This story was originally published September 30, 2025 at 12:59 AM.