Waller caps season with team record for catches
A week after setting a pair of Raiders records, Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller capped off his stellar season Sunday by setting the franchise’s record for most catches in a season.
And, even better, he did it on the day he caught the game-winning pass against the Broncos.
Waller broke Hall of Famer Tim Brown’s old single-season Raiders record of 104 catches with his seventh catch against Denver. He later broke the Broncos’ backs by catching a 2-point conversion pass with 24 seconds left that gave the Raiders a thrilling 32-31 win at Empower Field at Mile High.
As much as Waller enjoyed breaking another Raiders record and catching the game-winner, he still wants much more.
“I’m definitely grateful, but I don’t want this to be my greatest day as a Raider,” said Waller, who had nine catches for 117 yards and his ninth touchdown catch of the season. “I want us to keep going and I want our
team to have great days as well.”
Waller’s most significant catch Sunday didn’t even get counted toward his careerbest 107-catch season, since it came on a two-point conversion try with the game on the line. After reading the defense, Waller ran a quick slant in the end zone, where Derek Carr hit him perfectly for the go-ahead score.
Brown’s record fell when Waller grabbed a pass for a 15-yard gain with eight
minutes left, which also set up the Raiders’ game-tying touchdown one play later to make it 24-all. It was a drive to remember for the Raiders, who also saw Carr surpass the 4,000 yards passing for the season, and running back Josh Jacobs break the 1,000-yard mark for the second straight season.
But it was Waller’s franchise record for catches that got most of the attention after the game.
“Darren, man. He’s a special player. He’s one of them players where you’re in the game and you catch yourself watching. Just watching him play,” Jacobs said.
The 6-foot-6 Waller came into the regular-season finale needing seven catches to eclipse the record Brown set in 1997. After catching four passes early in the first half, including his ninth touchdown reception this year, Waller sat out a couple of plays while having his right leg worked on.
With some help from the trainers, Waller did return to the field but didn’t have another first-half catch after his brilliant 28-yard TD grab with 11 minutes left in the first half. On the touchdown, Waller sped past safety Will Parks and Carr hit his favorite target in stride in the end zone for a 10-10 tie.
Carr, who is close friends with Waller, said he’d been thinking all week about how his friend deserved to break the record.
“I’m not shocked that he broke the record. It’s something that was on my mind. I wanted to help him get to that. I definitely wanted to see that for him because he works so hard and what he’s overcome,” said Carr, alluding to how Waller has overcome drug addiction to become a better player and an even better man.
“Any time you have a franchise record, it’s a beautiful thing,” Carr added. “But then especially when you look at his story, on how he got there, where he came from. Everyone’s seen his story on “Hard Knocks” and all that, but you put that into perspective in what he’s been able to accomplish and overcome in his life.
“I don’t think there’s anyone in the world that wouldn’t root for the guy. He’s an amazing man, I love him to death.”
The two Raiders records Waller set last week were a couple of the few bright spots during last week’s painful loss to Miami. His five catches for 112 yards against the Dolphins enabled him to become the first tight end in the Raiders 60-year history to have 90-plus catches and 1,000 receiving yards in back-toback seasons. Waller also set the Raiders’ single-season record for catches by a tight end last week with 98, surpassing Todd Christensen.