The 2023 offseason will be a big one for Tennessee Titans 2022 third-round pick and quarterback, Malik Willis.
The Liberty product saw three starts in place of an injured Ryan Tannehill in 2022, and while he did show some flashes, the results overall were nothing to write home about.
Granted, he didn’t have much to work with, but Josh Dobbs was able to do more with the same cast of characters, further soiling the 23-year-old’s rookie season, which has led to fans being down on him going into 2023.
According to head coach Mike Vrabel, Willis’ offseason work is already well under way, with the second-year quarterback working out with a group of coaches down in Jacksonville and reporting back to the team.
Vrabel also noted that Willis’ demeanor around the building has been that of a starting quarterback.
“He’s already dove into the offseason, and he’s communicated with the staff about where he’s been, working with different coaches, a group in Jacksonville, and reporting back,” Vrabel said, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online. “His demeanor, walking through the building and seeing him in the cafeteria, he understands what it is supposed to look like, being a starting quarterback, being a quarterback in this league. You have to be on when you come in the building, it’s a certain presence you have to have.”
Offensive coordinator Tim Kelly basically echoed those sentiments, saying Willis is “doing what it takes to be a professional quarterback”, while also saying he’s “excited with the progress” the young signal-caller is making.
“Malik is doing a great job coming into the building every day, having a good routine right now,” Kelly said. “He is so charismatic, comes in, pops his head in with a big ol’ smile, and it’s exciting to see him in that routine, doing what it takes to be a professional quarterback. We’ll see where everything ends up, but we’re excited with the progress that it looks like he’s made.”
Perhaps the most important evaluation comes from new general manager Ran Carthon, who was not responsible for drafting Willis and certainly isn’t married to the youngster in his first season in Nashville.
Carthon says he’s looking for Willis to improve not just physically, but mentally as well given how important that aspect is for quarterbacks.
“The one thing I talked to Malik about was just to continue to grow as a quarterback, and that is not just throwing the ball, and not all these different things,” Carthon said. “A quarterback is so much more mental than it is physical, and from that standpoint I just talked to him about being able to lead the locker room, being able to have that presence and just continuing just to reach out to some of the greats in our games, and guys that (could) help him.
“So, we have been able to connect, and he’s reached out to other quarterbacks in the league to kind of serve as mentors for him, which kind of shows you who he is as a person and where he sees himself and where he wants to go.”
The hope was that Willis might be ready to take the reins after Year 1, but the Titans simply can’t give him the keys to the car yet after what we saw in 2022.
Looking ahead to next season, Willis has to show he’s capable of taking over the starting job at some point, but his first order of business will be to win the backup job behind whoever Tennessee tabs as the starter.
If Willis can prove he deserves a shot and succeeds, it would solve a massive, long-term problem Tennessee is facing under center.
