Bill Kostroun / Associated Press
Las Vegas Raiders’ Darren Waller, left gets past New York Jets’ Marcus Maye for a touchdown during the first half an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020, in East Rutherford, N.J.
Saturday, Jan. 2, 2021 | 2 a.m.
Las Vegas Raiders tight ends Darren Waller #83 and Jason Witten #82 line up against the New Orleans Saints during an NFL football game, Monday, Sept. 21, 2020, in Las Vegas.
A pair of Raider legends caught tight end Darren Waller by surprise last year coming out of halftime of the franchise’s final game in Oakland.
Tim Brown and Marcus Allen came up to Waller while he was riding the exercise bike to loosen up for the second half of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“They basically told me to keep up the good work,” Waller recounted. “That meant a lot to me. I don’t know if they know how much that meant to me right then. To even be mentioned with (Brown’s) name is pretty crazy because I remember watching him when I was super young.”
Waller’s name is conjoined with Brown’s this week going into Las Vegas’ season finale at Denver, which kicks off at 1:25 p.m. Sunday and airs on CBS. That’s because the current star is threatening to break a franchise record belonging to the Hall of Famer, one coach Jon Gruden thought “never would be broken.”
Waller needs seven catches to surpass Brown’s all-time Raiders’ mark of 104 receptions in a season, set in 1997.
A shot at history for Raiders’ tight ends is helping give meaning to a game that otherwise holds little considering both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention — and it’s not only Waller who is trying to make it.
Brown’s reception mark might be one of the more hallowed in Raiders’ lore, but position-mate Jason Witten is set to put his name in the NFL record book. Witten will surpass noted ironman Tony Gonzalez for the most games played by a tight end in league history on Sunday.
The 38-year-old will appear in his 271st game, dating back to his rookie season in 2003 with the Dallas Cowboys.
“I think there’s a common ground with greatness, they all have a couple things in common,” Gruden said of Waller and Brown. “Usually, it’s not by accident. They’re your hardest workers, they take care of themselves off the field, they’re the real deal and they have so many intangibles.”
“We’ve talked about it with Waller and Brown but (Witten’s) one of the great war daddies of all-time and he’s going to break Tony Gonzalez’s record on Sunday and it’s great to have been a small part of that.”
The Raiders signed Witten to a 1-year deal in the offseason in part to mentor its young roster. By all accounts, his presence has served as a positive with coaches and teammates praising Witten’s leadership.
And the influence has apparently gone both ways. Witten said his experience with the Raiders, and particularly Gruden, has further increased his interest in getting into coaching after he retires, though he’s not yet decided if Sunday will be his final game.
One player Witten hasn’t needed to instruct too much is Waller, whom was even more of a finished product and consummate pro than the veteran realized upon arriving in Las Vegas.
“It’s all the intangibles that stick out — how he prepared, what kind of teammate he is,” Witten said of Waller. “Coach Gruden asks him to play a lot of different positions and there’s a lot of volume to this offense. He’s got a firm grasp on what we want out of this…I think he’s playing at an extremely high level and can do that for a number of years to come.”
Witten has played about 38 percent of the Raiders’ offensive snaps this season, and with the Gruden putting an emphasis on the record, he’s a virtual lock to get on the field early in the game. Waller’s chances at Brown’s record are much less of a sure thing.
The third-year Raider does have at least seven catches in three of his last four games but has done so on only three other occasions this season. The best four-game stretch of Waller’s career has put him in position where he’s at least likely to break the 100-reception milestone.
Dating back to Week 14 against the Jets, Waller has 34 catches for 537 yards and three touchdowns.
“I’ve been targeted in these past four games more than the prior ones, but I don’t feel like anything changed from a preparation standpoint,” Waller said. “It’s just a matter of, sometimes you go out there and things don’t go as you plan. I honestly thought some games, ‘Oh, this could be a big game,’ and end up with 27 yards. But I feel like this year taught me that the numbers coming from a game doesn’t necessarily define my performance or how I’m playing.”
Accolades and records sit next to statistics as factors that don’t motivate Waller. He’s happy if they come but they’re not anything he’s seeking.
Witten abided by the same mindset for the vast majority of his career, but with his time as a player winding down, he’s allowed himself time to reflect on his imminent achievement. It’s made Witten think back to his first season in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys and how coach Bill Parcells instilled in him the ideals that have gotten him to this point.
“You hear people talk about often that it’s a show-me game and I feel like those traits I learned early on as a rookie in the NFL from a legendary coach was be dependable, be consistent and be reliable,” Witten said. “To have this moment this many years, I think will be special for me and my family.”
Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.
