Quarterback Malik Willis is most likely heading out of Green Bay this offseason, as the veteran quarterback’s rookie contract has expired. Green Bay has reportedly mulled placing the franchise tag on Willis, but no decision has been made.
It’s being reported that Willis could fetch over $30 Million per year despite the fact that he has only started 6 games in his entire career. Willis has spent his career sitting behind starter Jordan Love, and also riding the bench for the Tennessee Titans.
Though he has appeared in a limited amount of games, Willis has flashed serious potential, specifically during his time in Green Bay.
With the Titans he was rough, posting a 53% completion rate, 49.4 passer rating, three interceptions. With Green Bay it was a completely different picture.
In 2024 he posted a 124.8 passer rating on 50+ attempts, the highest single-season mark in NFL history at that threshold. In 2025 he appeared in four games with one start, going 85.7% completion for 422 yards and three touchdowns.
At 26 years old, coming off the best passer rating season in NFL history among qualified quarterbacks, heading into a free agent class thin at the position, Willis is going to get a deal that looks aggressive on paper.
What Teams Are Eyeing Malik Willis?
The Pittsburgh Steelers, who have an unresolved quarterback situation with Aaron Rodgers at 42, have been linked to Willis.
The Miami Dolphins have also been linked to Willis. The Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan said about Willis at the NFL Combine this week,
“I think I’d be lying to you – any team that is in a needy QB situation, if they tell you they’re not talking about Malik Willis, that would be a lie… a lot of like for the human being, he’s a great kid.”
Although the GM of the Dolphins had kind words to say about Willis, reporters are claiming that the prospect of him landing in Miami is diminishing by the day.
Alan Poupart of Sports Illustrated writes,
“Wanting to sign Willis and actually making it happen are two completely different things, and the Dolphins — as everyone knows or should know by now — have to overcome a nasty cap situation that will keep them from being big spenders in free agency, even if they were inclined to want to.”
It’s now being called a ‘slim possibility’ that Willis actually does end up in Miami, with the most likely suitors now being the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A College Career To Remember
Willis arrived at Auburn in January 2017. Over two seasons he played in 15 games, completing 11 of 14 passes for 69 yards and rushing for 309 yards and two touchdowns.
The Tigers had Jarrett Stidham ahead of him, and then a quarterback competition between Bo Nix and Joey Gatewood that Willis was never going to win.
When it became clear the path forward in Auburn wasn’t going to open up, Willis transferred. He landed at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, sat out 2019 per NCAA transfer rules, and waited.
When he finally played in 2020, the wait looked more than worth it.
In his first collegiate start, at Western Kentucky, Willis rushed for 168 yards and three touchdowns, a single-game record for a Liberty quarterback. Against Southern Miss that same season he threw six touchdown passes, tying a program record set in 1984.
He was named MVP of the Cure Bowl after Liberty beat Coastal Carolina 37-34 for the program’s first-ever win over a ranked FBS team. He won the Dudley Award that year, given to the best college football player in the state of Virginia.
Willis was projected by some analysts as high as second overall. He slid to 86th, the third quarterback taken behind Kenny Pickett at 20 and Desmond Ridder at 74.
Where do you think Willis will end up? Let us know in the comments!
