Before the season begins, which is less than nine weeks away, the Miami Dolphins are assembling their offensive puzzle, and more information has surfaced.
The Dolphins front staff understood they had a problem when it was revealed last week that former All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith were leaving the organization.
Smith set franchise records for catches (88), receiving yards (884), and touchdowns (eight) during his incredible season in Miami. There was an obvious gap left by his disappearance, which followed the team’s inability to pay him for being one of the league’s “top tight ends.”
Last week, former Pro Bowl player Darren Waller came out of retirement to play for the Dolphins, finally filling that vacancy in a startling turn of events for the whole football community.
In return for Waller and a conditional 2027 seventh-round pick, the Dolphins sent the New York Giants, who owned his rights, a 2026 sixth-round pick. The trade came at a moment when Miami’s need for a proven tight end had never been clearer — and Waller’s timing couldn’t have been better.
Now that Waller’s decision to come out of retirement and rejoin the NFL was made public early Monday morning by his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, more pieces of the puzzle are starting to fit together.
Rosenhaus, Waller’s agent, stated during his weekly appearance on WSVN 7’s “Sports Xtra,” “I received a call from Darren, and he said, ‘Drew, I’ve decided that I want to play again.'” “I miss playing football.” I feel the need to play. I want to play for the Miami Dolphins now that I’m back into the game.
After an injury-plagued time with the New York Giants, Waller abruptly retired in June 2024, citing a desire to concentrate on his mental health and personal development. He had also started experimenting with a music career at that time, putting out a startlingly large number of songs, such as “Choose wisely,” which described his retirement decision.
When he released the song last June, he stated, “It was quite a journey to reach my decision to retire.” I had to sit with a lot of emotions and let them manifest themselves. It was challenging to be my most genuine self and handle everything that came with being on stage, despite all of the incredible experiences that occurred over my career. I came up with this tune in this way.
Waller made it apparent that he needed time away from the pressures of playing professional football, even though he was only 31 when he retired. Much of the league was taken aback by his decision to return a little over a year later, but Miami welcomed him with open arms.
For the Dolphins, it also came at the ideal time.
After losing Jonnu Smith, Rosenhaus, who notably also represented Smith, stated, “This was fantastic timing for the Dolphins — to add Waller to the mix was really very fortunate.” “Because Jonnu was a part of that trade to the [Pittsburgh] Steelers, those are some big shoes to fill.”
At the end of the month, Waller is anticipated to report to training camp. He should be able to integrate easily into the Dolphins’ evolving offense because of his prior experience playing in a scheme similar to that of Mike McDaniel, who was the offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers in 2021.
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