Every now and then, a young quarterback hits free agency and sends fanbases into a frenzy, demanding their team sign him to a big deal. This year, that QB is Malik Willis of the Green Bay Packers, a former third-round pick who has filled in very well for Jordan Love over the past two seasons and is one of the most physically talented players in the league. He'll likely garner a big contract, but is that something Cleveland should be willing to pay, or should they let another team take that chance?
Willis has started a grand total of six games in the NFL and is nearly 27 years old, so why is he getting so much buzz? In order to answer that question, we need to take a look back at his career and how he got to this point. He originally began his collegiate career at Auburn before transferring to Liberty. Because of his strong arm and excellent running ability, Willis was viewed by many pundits as a candidate to be a top-five pick in the rough 2022 class, or at the very least, be the first QB selected.
That ended up being a wild misevaluation, as Willis lasted until the third round, where the Tennessee Titans made him the 86th pick. A core reason for the difference in opinion between the draft community and the NFL was that Willis's offense at Liberty was extremely simplistic, and the majority of his production came on off-script improvisation as opposed to consistent and repeatable execution. He started three games as a rookie, struggling to the tune of a 50.8% completion rate and three interceptions to zero touchdowns. That led to the Titans taking Will Levis early in the second round, which was the beginning of the end for Willis in Tennessee. After throwing all of five passes in year two, he was shipped off to Green Bay for a seventh-round pick.