Once again, the Pittsburgh Steelers are approaching free agency without a concrete quarterback solution in place. Most people are expecting the Steelers and QB Aaron Rodgers to agree on a one-year deal. Beat writer Mark Kaboly even expects it to happen essentially by free agency.
However, there are plenty of people who think the Steelers need to go in a different direction. Aaron Rodgers may help the Steelers in 2026, but at age 42, he’s not the answer beyond this year. So, who could that answer be? Could it be Will Howard, entering his first full offseason with the team? Or could they search for an answer in free agency? The top free agent quarterback will be Green Bay Packers QB Malik Willis.
Former Steelers S Ryan Clark thinks the Steelers should pursue Willis. Kaboly doesn’t. When he looks at Willis, he sees another quarterback the Steelers brought in recently that did not pan out.
“I don’t think he’s the answer,” Kaboly said Friday on the Kaboly + Mack Show. “He’s Justin Fields 2.0. Justin Fields all over again.”
Kaboly has been quite consistent in his belief that Malik Willis is not the answer. Some of his justification makes sense, too. After all, Willis has only attempted 155 passes in his four-year NFL career. It’s an extremely small sample size that you’re gambling on.
So in that way, perhaps Willis is Justin Fields 2.0. You’re gambling on a small sample size. With Justin Fields, the small sample size was the games in which Fields was a good passer. We actually had many examples of Fields’ struggles as a passer with the Chicago Bears. He started 38 games in four years with the Bears.
The Steelers were hoping to take Fields’ physical talent and turn him into a viable NFL starter. That didn’t happen for multiple reasons, even though he went 4-2. Fields was never supposed to be the starter in 2024. He was put in that spot due to QB Russell Wilson suffering multiple injuries before the season even started.
With Willis, he’s only started six NFL games, just less than half the games Alabama QB Ty Simpson started in his college career [15]. Yet we will all remember Malik Willis’ start against the Baltimore Ravens from 2025. In a losing effort (through no fault of his own), Willis completed 85.7 percent of his passes for 288 yards and one touchdown. He also ran for 60 yards and two more touchdowns.
Ravens flip from single-high to Cover-2, and Malik Willis has no problem with it. Reads back to front, quickly identifies the coverage chaos backside, and zips it to Christian Watson on the slot post. This is professional quarterbacking. pic.twitter.com/M5DQ8y148a
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) December 28, 2025
I’m not saying Malik Willis won’t fail in Pittsburgh. He could conceivably fail anywhere if he goes to a situation worse than Green Bay’s. However, he certainly has shown flashes of being more than just a capable passer. The bigger concern is just how much money it will cost a team to sign Malik Willis this offseason. Kaboly certainly doesn’t want Willis at a big-ticket number. Perhaps his tune would change if the contract numbers aren’t egregious.
Also, analyst Emory Hunt thinks Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy could see Malik Willis as his new Dak Prescott. Who wouldn’t want that in Pittsburgh?
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