With Malik Willis set to cash in and no guarantee that Desmond Ridder or Kyle McCord are a lock for the No. 2 quarterback spot in Green Bay, the Packers will yet again be in the market to solve that riddle. Green Bay could go the draft route and develop a young prospect, but Justin Fields is another intriguing option who could hit free agency.
Fields is an ideal fit for the Packers and is still under contract with the New York Jets after signing a two-year deal last offseason. However, multiple reports, including a definitive one from Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic, framed it as a matter of when, not if, regarding the Jets releasing Fields.
He’ll be released at some point, though the Jets say they are in no rush to make that move. Tyrod Taylor is open to returning if the Jets want him as a veteran backup again — and keep an eye on Andy Dalton for that backup role too. I predict that the Jets add two veterans and a rookie this offseason.
Green Bay turned Willis from an afterthought into a quarterback who will be starting somewhere in 2026, with a massive payday on the way. Willis’ situation isn’t as comparable to Fields’, but their play styles are very similar.
Willis is a true dual-threat quarterback. That was on full display in his three starts and 11 games played in Green Bay over the course of the last two years. Willis doesn’t just pose the threat of a quarterback who can use his legs if a play breaks down. He actively uses them, and Matt LaFleur catered some of his playcalling to that when Willis was under center.
Coming in to relieve a concussed Jordan Love in late December, Willis went nine for 11 passing for 121 yards and a touchdown in Chicago. He also ran it 10 times for 44 yards. The very next week, while starting against the Baltimore Ravens, Willis racked up 60 rushing yards on nine rushes and two rushing touchdowns. It was much of the same the year prior when Willis started back-to-back games against the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts and accumulated 41 rushing yards against the Colts and 73 with a touchdown rushing against the Titans.
Fields is cut from that same cloth. The transition from Willis to Fields wouldn’t be a drastic change at the No. 2 quarterback spot, because both flourish in similar areas.
Where things differ is when you compare résumés.
Malik Willis started just three games in two years for the Titans after they deemed they had seen enough to make a judgment call. Questions about Willis’ abilities remained. Tennessee’s offense in those two years wasn’t anything to brag about, and it had little to do with Willis, who didn’t see much action. The Titans ranked 28th in points per game in 2022 at 17.5 and 27th the following year at 17.9.
Green Bay traded a throwaway 2025 seventh-rounder to acquire Willis at the end of the 2024 preseason. He was a mystery box of sorts, and the Packers brought out his brilliance.
The sample size is much larger with Justin Fields, but it hasn’t been overwhelmingly great.
The former No. 11-overall pick in 2021, Fields has started 53 games in his career, with a deflating 16-37 record. That isn’t all his fault, but he hasn’t lived up to the hype of the No. 11 pick.
Considering where he’s been is important, though.
Fields spent his first three seasons with the Chicago Bears when they were still a mess. After that, he had a pitstop in Pittsburgh when he and a washed-up Russell Wilson tried to lift an offense that didn’t have much to work with. Last year, he went to quarterback hell and spent the season with the Jets, who never get the position right or develop properly.
Fields has much more experience than Willis did when he came to the Packers, and the results might have some looking elsewhere. However, Fields is at a spot in his career where taking a step back to reset as a backup quarterback may serve him best. What better place to do that than in a system and on a team that has a sterling reputation in quarterback development? Willis is a prime example of the excellence the Packers have at developing quarterbacks.
Malik Willis will be headed elsewhere, and all signs point towards a breakup between the Jets and Justin Fields. Although he’s been around longer and been granted way more opportunities, all hope shouldn’t be lost with Fields. He’d be a perfect No. 2 behind Love in Green Bay.