Waller Made Recent Headlines for Retirement Talk
Waller’s unretirement is especially intriguing because it comes in the wake of some viral comments he made about why he retired. On Thursday June 12, 2025, Waller made an appearance on The Side You Don’t See podcast and discussed the moment he realized he was going to retire.
He realized he wanted to retire at just 31 years old during Week 6 of the 2023 NFL season when he was a member of the Giants. The Giants were taking on the Buffalo Bills and Giants Head Coach Brian Daboll ran a series of plays using Waller like a fullback, much to Waller’s disdain.“I knew I was retiring when we played in Buffalo,” Waller said. “It was in the first quarter of the game, we were running like this counter-lead running play, and I’m kind of like leading through the hole like I’m a fullback. And the play is working, but I sit down on the sideline after a drive where we ran it like three times, and I’m like, ‘What the f— am I doing with my life? I’m out here playing fullback. I don’t even wanna do this s— anymore.’”Waller hasn’t publicly shared why he is coming out of retirement, but it’s safe to say that Miami is assuring him that he won’t be used like a fullback in 2025.
How Does This Affect The Raiders?
Aside from Raider fans getting to see fan-favorite Waller attempt a comeback, his unretirement and trade to Miami actually directly affects Las Vegas’s 2025 roster and plans. On Monday, June 30, 2025, the Miami Herald’s Dolphins insider Omar Kelly reported that the Dolphins were trying to trade for a Raiders tight end actually on their active roster, Michael Mayer. “Miami has had their eye on Raider TE Michael Mayer for a while,” Kelly wrote in a post on X.