Last night was “The Malik Willis Show.” There’s just no two ways about it. I tried as hard as I could to watch other players on the offense, but my eyes were glued on the rookie quarterback, who figures to get a legit crack at the franchise job within the next couple of years. A fan can’t help but get caught up in the excitement of a new quarterback, but when you factor in the fact that this is a particularly dynamic quarterback that plays an electric brand of football, that feeling is amplified. So, how’d he do?
I’m a ‘bad news first’ kind of guy, so let me get through the negatives first. There were occasions on which Willis definitely held onto the ball a bit too long. With 23 seconds left in the 2nd quarter, Willis took a sack that forced the Titans to burn their last timeout when he should’ve thrown the ball away. He had a couple of balls that sailed or were just a tad off the mark, but by and large, I thought he made good decisions when he did decide to throw the ball. He was a little too reliant upon his legs, and while I commend him for his ability to dodge the big hit, there was at least one instance when he hit the second level of the defense and it closed in on him what appeared to be a little quicker than expected. It looked like he expected to breeze by defenders like he was able to do at will at Liberty. None of this is surprising, and all of it is to be expected as Willis continues to adjust to the NFL game.
Now, the positives were scintillating, and showed just why so many considered Willis the most explosive quarterback in this year’s draft class. You saw the whole “he has the arm to make every throw in the book” assessment come to life with a beautiful deep ball to Racey McMath.
Malik Willis bomb! pic.twitter.com/lYj8LK9OZY
— Billy M (@BillyM_91) August 12, 2022
Later on, what was, at least in my opinion, a more impressive and accurate throw, Willis hit Mason Kinsey in stride 20 yards down the field. The placement of this one was absolutely perfect, as Willis dropped it in over two defenders right where Kinsey could easily grab it.
Malik Willis dart to Mason Kinsey for 20 yards #TENvsBAL pic.twitter.com/ydcOLruAVe
— Justin Graver (@titansfilmroom) August 12, 2022
The arm talent was clearly on display. He also showed a little bit of that Malik Willis magic, when he hit Tommy Hudson from an odd sidearm angle to move the chains. I also liked his command of the offense, at least in terms of getting guys into the play, and he handled the 35-second drive to end the first half with a sense of urgency that indicated he understood the situation he was in (also, shout out to Kinsey for that hustle back to the line after that big catch). Willis is also very obviously a talented, natural rusher. He eluded the pass rush to score a rushing touchdown early on in the game, and routinely proved hard to bring down as he shuffled around behind the line of scrimmage.
This is about what you’d expect out of his debut – some good, some not so good, and a lot of “oh, he’ll get that corrected.” Last night was a net positive, for sure. There was no deer in headlights glare. There was no sense that Willis was in over his head. I do think the national media is overreacting to the positives, though – not that that would ever happen in the preseason. Willis dazzled on a few plays. There’s no denying that. But, when you hear Mike Vrabel tell the press after the game that Willis needs “to try to throw the ball when guys are open,” and that he pulled Willis because he wasn’t throwing the ball, it’s evident that there’s still a lot for Willis to learn in adjusting to the NFL game. Maybe watch more than just the few highlights that are scrolling across your Twitter feeds.
The important thing is to look at where Willis was when he arrived for minicamp compared to where he is now. I think it’s safe to say that he has progressed from the neck up. For a team that routinely talks about stacking good days, Willis laid a hell of a foundation to stack good days on top of last night.
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Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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