Darren Waller was a late addition to the Miami Dolphins, but he made an immediate impact after joining the team. This includes catching four touchdowns across his first three games before suffering a pectoral injury. He has been out since then, but appears to be nearing a return as Week 13 approaches.
Will Darren Waller Return for the Dolphins in Week 13?
Waller appeared to be a major addition to the Dolphins’ offense, especially with Tyreek Hill suffering a season-ending injury. The star tight end didn’t open the 2025 season on the roster, but quickly became a legitimate contributor upon his arrival.
Three consecutive solid games and four total touchdowns seemed to solidify his role in their offensive system, but a pec injury in his fourth appearance derailed his momentum. He has been on the injured reserve list since going down in their Week 7 matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
He seems to be trending in the right direction after the Dolphins recently announced that they will officially open his practice window ahead of their Week 13 meeting with the New Orleans Saints. This doesn’t necessarily mean that he will play this week, but his designation to return gives Miami three weeks to potentially activate him.
Darren Waller (pec) will have practice window opened on Wednesday.
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) November 24, 2025
Waller will reportedly get back to practice on Wednesday, though, considering his lengthy absence and extensive injury history, it will be interesting to see if he is limited or a full participant. This will give the first indication of how close he is to returning to an actual game in the final stretch of the 2025 season.
A full participation would suggest that he has a realistic chance of making a Week 13 return, but even if he is unable to, the recent update is surely encouraging for his chances of doing so in the coming weeks. The Dolphins have been utilizing a trio of other tight ends as essentially a committee to replace him, but none of them have been particularly impressive.
Greg Dulcich currently ranks 34th among all tight ends on PFSN’s Impact Rankings this season, which is the highest for any of their active players in the position. Tanner Conner and Julian Hill, their other two options, both rank outside of the top 50 tight ends.
Waller can theoretically get back to giving them reliable production as they desperately cling to their pursuit of the playoffs. They remain in the race after winning three of their past four games and improving to a 4-7 record, but they still have plenty of work to do.