Don't expect to see Darren Waller beginning the 2022 season in any jersey that isn't the Raiders.
Speaking with CBS Sports' Zach Gelb, Waller said that he had been told by the team he is not going to be traded despite reports that Las Vegas has had discussions with the Packers to send him to Green Bay.
"They said this is not a thing that is happening, there's no trade that is going to happen," Waller told Gelb.
Darren Waller told me the Raiders told him he isn’t getting traded. @CBSSportsRadio
— Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) April 28, 2022
pic.twitter.com/uTUvEPHGnb
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Cheesehead TV's Aaron Nagler had reported that Green Bay and Las Vegas have been in contact about a possible trade to send the Pro Bowl tight end to Wisconsin.
The report that Waller might have been discussed in trade conversations between the Packers and Raiders clearly did not convince Derek Carr that one of his favorite targets could be on the move.
Lol no chance. https://t.co/vINVlgdSMj
— Derek Carr (@derekcarrqb) April 26, 2022
According to Around the NFL's Kevin Patra, Waller had previously come up in trade discussions between the two sides earlier in the offseason. When Davante Adams was in the process of being traded to Las Vegas, the Packers had reportedly requested a first-round pick and an unknown player as the return, per The Athletic's Jeff Howe. Patra reported that Waller was the unknown player.
However, the two sides weren't able to complete that swap because players are not allowed to be included in trades for players on the franchise tag.
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The Raiders reached the playoffs in 2021 on an overtime field goal against the rival Chargers to secure one of the three AFC wild cards, but they've watched as the two teams behind them in the AFC West standings have loaded up on talent. The Broncos traded for Russell Wilson, while the Chargers traded for Khalil Mack and signed Mike Williams and J.C. Jackson to deals. The Chiefs, of course, remain the Chiefs, even after trading Tyreek Hill.
But the Raiders weren't quiet. In landing Adams, they added to an already impressive receiving corp around Carr with wide receiver Hunter Renfrow and Bryan Edwards, and Waller at tight end and Josh Jacobs at running back. Though that group would have remained strong without Waller, losing a standout tight end, who had 55 receptions for 665 yards and two touchdowns in just 11 games a season ago, would have hurt Las Vegas' chances of keeping up in the AFC arms race.
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Raiders' odds of winning the Super Bowl (+4000) are already the lowest of any team in the AFC West, trailing the Chiefs (+950), the Chargers (+1600) and the Broncos (+1600).
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The Packers, on the other hand, would have greatly benefitted from the addition of Waller. Following the trade of Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling walking in free agency, Allen Lazard is the only returning wide receiver on the Packers who had more than 400 receiving yards a season ago.
Adding Waller would also be a drastic change from what Aaron Rodgers has been used to among his receivers in the past. According to Stathead, the most receiving yards a Green Bay tight end has had in a season was 767 by Jermichael Finley in 2011. Waller entered the 2021 season coming off two straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
Still, the Packers remain one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl, even after the reigning MVP lost two of his top receivers this offseason. FanDuel Sportsbook lists them at +1100 odds to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the 2022 season, tied for the second best in the NFC behind the Buccaneers (+750) and even with the reigning Super Bowl champion Rams at +1100.