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It didn’t take long for Darren Waller’s injuries woes to return.
He is unlikely to play in the Dolphins’ Week 1 opener against the Colts after suffering a hip strain before Wednesday’s practice and exacerbating it Thursday.
“While trying to prevent a setback, he had a setback,” head coach McDaniel said Friday. “So, what does that mean? It means he’s being challenged. The most eager player to play has another challenge. I know he’s up for it, but I don’t think he’s going to play this week, which wasn’t planned.
“We had already planned not to practice him anyway — something that we didn’t know if it was what it was until we knew what it was. But we were planning for a setback prevention, and he had a setback.”
The Dolphins acquired Waller, 32, from the Giants — along with a 2027 conditional seventh-round pick — after he came out of retirement in July, in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick.
Waller spent all of last year retired and away from football.
He has been listed as the starting tight end on the team’s depth chart and is expected to have a significant role.
The Dolphins are thin at the position after including Jonnu Smith (along with a 2027 seventh-round pick) in the Jalen Ramsey trade that brought Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round pick back to Miami.
Injuries have plagued Waller throughout his career.
He played just 12 games in his sole season with the Giants in 2023-24, who gave up a third-round pick to acquire him from the Raiders.
While he was retired, Waller released several music videos and went through a divorce with ex-wife Kelsey Plum, who currently stars for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
