Darren Waller Says He Was Hospitalized in November 2023, Talks 'Scary' Medical Event

After announcing his retirement from the NFL on Sunday, former New York Giants tight end Darren Waller revealed that he was facing a life-threatening situation a few months ago.

Per The Athletic's Charlotte Carroll, Waller said in a video on his YouTube channel that he dealt with "a very scary event" this past November in which he thought to himself, "Damn, I'm just dying on this couch and nobody knows." He added that the episode caused him to be hospitalized for three and a half days.

Waller said he initially thought that what he was going through was his third case of COVID-19. However, he had a fever and started "shaking pretty violently, uncontrollably" after getting home from shooting a music video. When he started to feel like he couldn't breathe, he called 911. During his hospital stay, he said he couldn't stand up to use the restroom or feed himself. He said the experience changed how he viewed his life.

"I'm like, 'Pretty clear, I almost just lost my life and I don't know if I really feel like if I would've died that I would have felt great about how my life was going if I died at the time,'" he said.

Waller announced his retirement from football after nine seasons in the NFL. He spent the first three years of his career with the Baltimore Ravens and the next five with the Las Vegas Raiders franchise before being traded to New York prior to the 2023 campaign.

The 31-year-old made indications throughout the offseason that he was leaning toward retirement. In April, he told The Athletic's Dan Duggan that he was "evaluating my overall commitment level" to football. He also appeared to be focusing more on his music career in recent months.

"We have great respect for Darren as a person and player," the Giants said in a statement following Waller's retirement, per Jori Epstein of Yahoo Sports. "We wish him nothing but the best."