Las Vegas Raiders: Top-25 players of the Derek Carr Era
No. 10: Darren Waller, TE (2018-present)
We kick off our top 10 with a player who came to the franchise as an unknown and has since become one of the best players in the game at his position group. Darren Waller was plucked from the Baltimore Ravens practice squad back in 2018, Jon Gruden’s first season back with the team, and appeared in four games that first season.
However, Waller exploded onto the scene in 2019, hauling in 90 catches for over 1,100 yards, while finding the end zone three times. He would follow that up with one of the best seasons we have ever seen from a pass-catcher in Raiders history, setting the franchise’s single-season mark with 107 receptions to go along with nearly 1,200 yards and nine scores.
While injuries have derailed him the past two seasons, appearing only 20 of a possible 34 regular season games, he is still widely regarded as one of the best playmakers at the tight end position in the game. Carr has had some excellent tight ends in his Raiders career, but Waller stands above all and should have a lot of good football left in him.