Last season, prior to the draft, most felt that a Malik Willis landing spot would be the first quarterback off the board. After falling to the later rounds and being snatched up by Tennessee, expectations were tempered further. When he finally got his opportunity he failed to produce. He finished the season with a 50% completion percentage, no passing touchdowns, and three interceptions. His ground production was not great either rushing for just over a hundred yards and one touchdown throughout multiple games.
His biggest failure came from the end of the season in which he was sat in favor of journeyman backup Josh Dobbs with a playoff berth on the line. Finishing with a losing record lost any confidence he had in the building as the Titans opted to draft Will Levis in this year’s draft. They look to be letting Levis develop under current vet Ryan Tannehill leaving Willis the odd man out. A change in scenery is needed for both sides as now the question becomes, where is the best landing spot for Malik Willis?
Malik Willis Landing Spots
Minnesota Vikings
There was plenty of buzz around this offseason that Minnesota was going to trade up for a quarterback in the draft. Plenty of the moves this offseason indicated they were trying to get younger and build around a rookie quarterbacks contract. It’s completely realistic to think they would try and acquire a player with that.
Willis offered a similar skill set to the fourth overall pick from this draft, Anthony Richardson. While this provides a stark contrast to Kirk Cousins, they could perhaps build an offense tailored toward his ability. We’ve seen this done prior with Baltimore going from Joe Flacco to Lamar Jackson.
Minnesota has plenty of weapons on the outside such as Justin Jefferson, T.J. Hockenson, and this year’s rookie, Jordan Addison. They currently have two dynamic runners on the roster and one of the best young left tackles in the league. If Willis wants a place where he will have maximum talent around him, Minnesota could be that place.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The message is beginning to wear thin at this point from Tampa when it comes to life after Tom Brady. Last season during his mini-retirement, we heard how Blaine Gabbert was the guy. After his retirement this year, we heard Kyle Trask was the guy. After the draft, we heard how now Baker Mayfield was the guy. As the saying goes, when you have multiple quarterbacks, you have none.
Willis could come into a Tampa Bay team with a plethora of talent on both sides of the ball. What he brings to the table for them is a dynamic element to the run game which they haven’t had since Leonard Fournette went on a tear in the Super Bowl run. He still needs to grow as a passer but a possession receiver in Chris Godwin, and a huge target in Mike Evans could hide some of his struggles.
Tampa could offer Malik Willis a landing spot without lofty expectations in a weaker division. This could largely appeal to Willis as the expectations with Tennessee are essentially what led to the team losing faith in him.
Arizona Cardinals
There’s an eerie feeling around Kyler Murray and his future with the Cardinals. After the drama leading up to his contract extension last season, and the fallout from the wording of the contract, there could be a sense he’s begun to wear out his welcome.
The monumental collapse Arizona had a few years ago after being heavy hitters in the regular season also doesn’t help. This season’s disappointing finish led to Kliff Kingsbury getting fired. DeAndre Hopkins has even expressed his willingness to leave as he and Murray have clashed on the sideline.
Willis is not anywhere close to as talented of a passer as Murray is, but he does get an opportunity to play in an offense tailored to his strengths. On the other side, Arizona hedges their bets if they have to move on from Murray so that they won’t have to dramatically change their offense.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The worst-kept secret in recent years was the Steelers taking Najee Harris in the first round. The year prior appeared they were continuing with that practice as many had Willis penciled in for them. They were all proven wrong however when Pittsburgh drafted Kenny Pickett.
There was a decent interest from the Steelers in Willis prior to the draft. There’s about zero chance he pushes Pickett for the starting job, but he could make for a better backup than Mitchell Trubisky. As Pickett has proven to have a slight problem with concussions this past season, Willis could play soon.
Willis would have a strong enough surrounding cast that all he has to do is be a game manager if he had to step in. A strong running game, solid pass catchers, and elite defense could give him the magic he needs to showcase his potential.
Buffalo Bills
Looking at Trubisky, as he was cast aside from the Bears, he rejuvenated his career by sitting behind Josh Allen. Willis could take a page out of his book and do the same. Buffalo offers a lot of upside for Willis as well as Allen.
If last season’s flop against Cincinnati wasn’t enough to show the Bills they need to do things differently, nothing will be. Willis would give them an opportunity to use him during the season for all the quarterback runs.
Trubisky didn’t have to fill in for much of the season to get teams excited about him again. Accepting the backup role for what it is could help Willis. He can learn from one of the current greats at the position, which could give him the boost in stock he needs.
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