The Carolina Panthers are giving tight end Darren Waller all the time he needs to get into football conditioning. He's missed a lot of preparation time this offseason, and although coach Dave Canales said he showed up in tremendous shape, it will be a gradual process.
That left one Panthers insider wondering just how they will approach Waller's status with final cuts on the not-too-distant horizon.
Mike Kaye of ESPN thought Waller could be more of a practice squad option until he is ready for a full workload. There wasn't much interest in him on the open market before Carolina came calling, and the fact that he wouldn't be subject to the waiver system at this stage of his career gives the Panthers a little more flexibility.
Carolina Panthers could stash Darren Waller until he is fully ready to go
Whether it's a risk general manager Dan Morgan wants to take is another matter.
"The addition of Darren Waller raised eyebrows, but the lack of interest in him before his signing and his lack of workload before cuts could make him more of a practice-squad option, barring a trade of an incumbent tight end.
"Waller isn't subject to waivers so the Panthers can be strategic with the vested veteran's inclusion in and around the cut-down deadline."
The Panthers didn't acquire Waller without a plan in place. They kept faith with their tight end options earlier in the offseason, and when the development wasn't satisfactory, Morgan finally sought outside help.
Waller brings a different dynamic. Keeping him healthy will be crucial, but his size, dependability, and ability in the red zone could be an upgrade. Even so, until he learns the scheme and gets his football legs underneath him, it's a wait-and-see scenario.
Carolina has options. Tommy Tremble and Mitchell Evans will be on the team. Feleipe Franks brings too much special-teams value to be cast aside. Ja'Tavion Sanders might be the odd man out, but this is almost entirely dependent on whether Waller is fit enough to make a lasting contribution.
Darren Waller will have a big role to play once he is fully up to speed
If he needs a little more time, Kaye's suggestion makes sense. And unless another team has had a complete change of heart about Waller over the last couple of weeks, it should be a pretty straightforward process.
All possibilities are on the table.
The plan was probably made clear to Waller before he signed, and he's on board. Morgan clearly thinks he can offer something different, but just how long it'll take him to get up to speed remains to be seen.
If Waller moves to the practice squad, it'll only be a matter of time before he gets called up permanently. Otherwise, there was no point whatsoever in the Panthers shifting the dynamic in the first place.
This is just one of several tricky conundrums Morgan and Canales must solve. And for Waller, he'll roll with the punches and keep the main thing at the forefront.
That, of course, is putting in the work to make sure he is ready to become a legitimate difference-maker for Carolina this season.
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