Darren Waller, 31, retires from NFL (2024)

NFL star Darren Waller has informed the New York Giants that he has called it a day on his football career at the tender age of 31 after his recent split from WNBAstar Kelsey Plum.

Waller, who only signed with the Giants last year to become the highest paid player in his position ($17M in 2023) until Travis Kelce's extension this offseason, has announced his decision before the start of the team's mandatory minicamp (June 11).

Waller, 31, also revealed in a YouTube video that a 'very scary' health emergency last November made him re-think where his life was at. He did not name the medical condition, but Waller said he struggled to breathe and wound up spending 3 1/2 days in a hospital unable to stand, feed himself or use the bathroom.

'I come out of that experience and I'm sitting in the hospital,' Waller said, 'and I go back into my daily life and I'm like, `Pretty clear, I almost just lost my life, and I don't know if I really feel if I would have died that I would have felt great about how my life was going if I died at that time.''

The one-time Pro Bowl selectee's decision comes just weeks after he and Plum - a point guard for the Las Vegas Aces - filed for divorce in April.

The couple were married for a little over a year, as they tied the knot in March 2023.

Earlier this year, Waller released 'Who Knew' asong about his former wife. The track received mixed reviews, with some individuals saying it lacked quality.

Waller is working on a music career, and spent the offseason contemplating his decision and was not with the team.

He thanked the NFL in his video, saying that being a football player opened doors to help address his past struggles with addiction that he might not have had otherwise.

'Eternally grateful for the game of football. I wouldn't be able to have this conversation or to think things through or be self-reflective if it wasn't for an opportunity to save my life and go to rehab, which the NFL offered me,' he said.

'They also gave me an opportunity to reestablish myself, to come back into the world and do something productive. Provide an example, be a leader, be a difference-maker in my craft but also in my day-to-day wherever I go.'

Before reports of his decision to retire emerged on Sunday, Waller had three more seasons on his contract with the Giants. He was due a base salary of $10.5M in 2024 although no guaranteed money remains on his deal.

The Giants will now take a dead cap charge of $7.9M but will save $6.2M against the cap this season. The Giants acquired Waller from the Las Vegas Raiders via a trade in March 2023.

'We have great respect for Darren as a person and a player. We wish him nothing but the best,' the Giants shared a statement regarding Waller's decision to retire, via the NFL Network.

Waller retires after eight NFL seasons, having played in New York (2023), Las Vegas (2018-2023) and the Baltimore (2015-2018). He was selected by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft.

Plum, meanwhile, was the No 1 overall pick of the 2017 WNBA draft. She is a two-time WNBA champion and a two-time WNBA All-Star.

In April, she confirmed that she had jointly filed for divorce with Waller in a cryptic and emotional statement.

'I'm devastated. I walked through fire for that man, but I now see it's time to go,' her statement read.

'God has given me an incredible life, and I'm truly so grateful for the profound love from my family and friends. One day I'll share my story, today is not that day.

'Thank you for the grace to process my pain, to forgive and move forward. Today and everyday I will continue to choose joy. Much love KP'