The Tennessee Titans landed a huge steal when Liberty quarterback Malik Willis fell to them in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft, getting a talented passer with limitless potential.
Willis ended up in a stellar spot, as well, giving him the opportunity to sit behind an established veteran in Ryan Tannehill, getting acclimated to the speed of the NFL game before having to take over as a starter.
Tannehill spoke to the media Tuesday, and said that while he wasn’t informed by the team ahead of time about the pick, he immediately reached out to Willis to welcome him to the team.
The veteran doesn’t, however, feel a responsibility to mentor the rookie quarterback (via Paul Kuharsky):
Tannehill stance on mentoring Willis. #Titans. pic.twitter.com/fAnUdcediH
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) May 3, 2022
Tannehill spoke at length about the difficulty he had this season processing their early playoff exit, and he’s also missing his top wide receiver following the A.J. Brown trade. He sounds like a quarterback motivated to make sure the Titans go farther in the playoffs this year, if not a little frustrated that a team without a second-round pick spent their third-rounder on his eventual replacement.
