Titans film study: Breakdown of Malik Willis’ strengths, weaknesses

The Tennessee Titans made one of the most noteworthy moves on Day 2 of the 2022 NFL draft when they traded up four picks to take Liberty quarterback Malik Willis with the No. 86 overall selection.

This pick at that point in the draft is the definition of low risk, high reward, except calling Willis’ ceiling a “high reward” would be massively underselling his potential.

From a physical standpoint, Willis possesses all the traits that you could want in a modern-day quarterback. However, despite having a seemingly limitless ceiling, there are valid reasons for his draft night slide into the third round.

This article is going to elaborate on what makes Willis a special talent, while also explaining why he will likely need an extended period to mature into a professional quarterback.

With that said, let’s dive into everything that makes the Titans’ newest quarterback and potential future of the franchise such an intriguing player.

Strengths according to NFL Analyst, Lance Zierlein:

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Film examples of what makes Willis a special talent

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Rare arm talent

According to Pro Football Focus, the potential future face of the Titans’ franchise led all FBS quarterbacks with a total of 60 “big time throws,” while also having the highest rate of in a single season.

The Liberty product had a big-time throw rate of 11 percent, surpassing Josh Allen’s previous high since 2015 of 10.6 percent.

Also noteworthy when driving the point home on how strong Willis’ arm strength is, the Titans’ new quarterback recently set Senior Bowl records for highest initial airspeed (75.7 MPH) and average airspeed (51.0 MPH).

The following clips are some examples of what makes Willis’ arm talent so special.

In this first example, Willis shows what he can be when his mechanics are synched together. Willis has a clear pocket in front of him, and that allows him to step into his throw and complete his follow-through.

The ball comes out of his hand like a missile and hits his receiver inside the end-zone while running in-stride. The defender tries to get his hand up, but there was no room for recovery with that throw.

This next clip is both a great example of what Willis is capable of, along with a great example of what he was often forced to play with. Throughout his time at Liberty, he was throwing to receivers who couldn’t separate, and he played behind a below-average offensive line and alongside running backs with inferior athleticism in comparison to himself.

In this particular play, a lack of wide receiver separation proves to be no problem for Willis, who can maneuver to the left in order to give himself a proper launching platform.

Despite being blanketed by coverage, the Liberty quarterback drops the ball over his receivers’ shoulder, and the wideout reels it in.

Willis possesses the type of arm talent that can make any throw and beat any coverage as long as he puts it in the right spot.

I’ll leave this section with some clips of Willis throwing beautiful darts to his wide receivers:

Elite athleticism

Willis possesses a scary blend of game-breaking speed, physicality, contact balance, and a desire to win the rep as a runner.

According to NBC Sports’ Thor Nystrom, the dual-threat quarterback supposedly ran a 4.37 40-yard dash during his time at Auburn.

Willis possesses more than just straight-line speed, though.

Also per Nystrom, Willis had 90 broken tackles forced in 2021, which was one more than Michigan State running back Kenneth Walker III. It should also be noted that Walker had 66 more carries than Willis did.

In total, the Atlanta native tied Lamar Jackson for most forced missed tackles by a quarterback since 2014 with 140. The Titans’ new quarterback also forced missed tackles on 60 percent of his runs, the highest percentage in PFF history.

In this first video, Willis uses his rare elusiveness to avoid the initial free rusher, and rather than taking off with the ball, he keeps his eyes downfield and sees his receiver streaking down the sideline.

The young quarterback then shows off the rare arm strength we discussed earlier as he drops the ball in the bucket before the safety gets there.

In this next clip, Willis shows how special a weapon his legs can be around the goal line. The rookie quarterback runs an RPO with his running back and decides to keep the ball himself. None of the defenders fall for the initial fake and he is now in a situation where he is surrounded by six black jerseys.

This somehow turns into a touchdown after Willis side steps one defender, runs through another, and knifes his way through the final two wimpy tackles.

Lastly, this play epitomizes what Willis can do as a runner. The turn-styles that were the Liberty offensive linemen were once again unable to provide adequate time for the talented gunslinger.

As a result, Willis is forced to his right, where he decides to take off. As he sees two defenders ahead, he takes advantage of his leverage and runs at an inside angle that ultimately makes them irrelevant to the play.

Taking this angle, however, left him vulnerable to a big hit from the opposing defensive tackle who does his best to get a free kill shot on the running quarterback.

Willis then shows off his incredible contact balance by disrespectfully spinning off the defender’s and barely breaking stride en route to a massive gain.

Last season, the Liberty legend led all quarterbacks in the country with 794 rushing yards after contact, and it was largely because of incredible plays like these.

Willis’ "wow" plays are truly WOW plays

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In this first example, Liberty does a good job at getting Willis out of the pocket and away from his outmatched offensive line. The running back misses on his only assignment but Willis is able to spin off the defender to make a massive game-breaking play.

After regaining his composure, Willis feels the pressure coming once again but notices his receiver angling towards the pylon and decides to meet him there with a beautiful spot pass to the four-yard line.

It was plays like these that led Liberty to their first-ever victories over multiple ACC programs in 2020.

This next one is just ridiculous. It is plays like these that are going to make it hard for Willis to develop a “boring” side of his game. He always feels like he can make something out of nothing and lives for the big play.

I won’t even try to explain this one; best explanation is it’s just Malik Willis doing Malik Willis things.

Weaknesses according to NFL Analyst, Lance Zierlein:

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Film examples of areas Wills needs to improve

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Inability to consistently read and/or manipulate defenses, combined with questionable decision-making

In these two examples, Willis displays a need to improve in those three areas, as he essentially telegraphs the plays to the opposing safeties which nearly lead to game-changing turnovers.

In this first clip, Willis fails to scan the field and never reads the safety coming from the opposite hash.

Willis’ tendency to latch on to a target likely let the safety know this was his intended target from the start.

Willis has a wide receiver open on the other side of the field if he takes the time to identify the breaking safety. If he looks the safety off, he probably would’ve created enough hesitancy in the defender to open up space to make that throw.

Instead, the safety identifies the play and makes a b-line right to the spot and nearly causes a turnover.

In this second clip, Willis faces immediate pressure, which distracts him from identifying the deep safety who is reading his eyes and mirroring his movements.

As the young signal-caller is forced left, he is eventually baited into another dangerous throw that nearly turns into an interception.

Willis has the wheel route open for a split second if he trusts what he sees. Instead, he waits a smidge longer to release the ball, which gives the safety enough time to get there and nearly take the ball away. These are just two examples of a concerning reoccurring issue with the talented signal-caller.

Lack of anticipation

In these next examples, I’m going to show a few of the common issues that show up when Willis is asked to throw with anticipation.

In this first example, he does one thing that will get you beat as a pro quarterback; he doesn’t trust his eyes enough to pull the trigger before the route is broken off.

Rather than releasing the ball as his receiver is approaching the 20-yard line, Willis waits for his receiver to physically reach the 20 before he even starts his throwing motion.

This is something that will easily get him intercepted in the pros if he doesn’t clean it up. He has to improve his overall ability to throw with anticipation otherwise defensive backs are going to make a living off breaking on his passes.

This particular pass needs to be out as the receiver is making his break so the wideout can almost simultaneously meet the ball at the spot.

This is definitely something that can be improved through reps and coaching, but his lack of anticipation is one thing that is holding him back from being anything close to a starting-caliber quarterback at this very moment.

Also noteworthy, this is an example of him not going through progressions. He has a target running wide open in the middle of the field for almost the duration of the play.

In this second example, Willis should recognize that he has soft coverage on the outside. Once the corner begins to bail, that should have been a sign that the throw on the hitch was going to be there if he lets it rip before the break.

Instead, he once again waits to see his receiver finish the route — and to make matters worse, he exacerbates the lack of anticipation issue with an inaccurate pass.

He often misses on throws like this due to his lack of trust on anticipation and timing routes, therefore, he tries to overcompensate for it with his arm strength. Willis can get away with it at times, but more often than not, it will lead to messy reps like these ones.

If he doesn’t clean up this aspect of his game, higher-caliber cornerbacks at the professional level are bound to start baiting Willis into thinking they’re beaten before breaking on the route and making a play on the ball.

The Titans’ young signal-caller has to do a better job at trusting what he’s seeing if he’s ever going to maximize his talents. Being able to let passes rip with timing and anticipation is vital for success at the NFL level.

Should Willis ever get to a point where his physical skill set and mechanics are synchronized with the cerebral aspect of his game, it’s not an exaggeration to say the league better be ready.

Unfortunately, it’s just a much bigger “if” than anyone would prefer.

Must learn to play boring football

This is a massive one for Willis. It is crucial for his development that he understands that it’s okay to throw the ball away, take the check-downs, and live to fight another down.

His habit of being baited into playing hero ball could be a death sentence for his career if he doesn’t clean this mentality up.

In this first clip. Willis has a wide-open check down that would easily pick up a chunk of yards; however, he chooses to trust his arm talent instead and decides to let the ball rip into heavy coverage, which leads to an interception.

In reality, he has two targets running completely wide open that would probably get close to the yardage gained had he completed that dangerous pass.

However, his bad habit of not scanning the field, or taking what the defense gives him once again caught up to him.

In this next example, Willis refuses to accept that a play is dead and ends up causing more harm than good.

The Liberty quarterback is flushed right and faces heavy pressure as he nears the sideline. Rather than throwing the ball out of bounds, he carelessly chucks it in the air, which leads to an easy interception for the defense.

In this next video, the Liberty quarterback simply refuses to let a play with no potential die and ends up getting crushed at the end of it.

This is something you can live with against North Texas, but Willis won’t last in the NFL if he forces himself into these types of situations too often. He must learn to accept when a play is over in order to protect the team, and more importantly, protect himself.

Plays that even make Carson Wentz cringe

If you thought Wentz’s infamous left-handed passes were a doozy, wait until you see the no-look, left-handed, over-the-shoulder pass Willis attempted while standing in his own end-zone.

There’s really nothing to add to this other than please stop doing this for the sake of yourself, the team, and Titans fans everywhere.

Inaccurate passes

This play actually displays slightly better anticipation, but unfortunately for Willis, another one of his biggest issues arose in this play, as his inaccuracy led to a missed opportunity.

The young quarterback rips the pass to his receiver, but the ball placement is high and away, which leads to an ugly-looking incompletion on a play that had big-gain potential. Anytime Willis misses on his throws, it tends to be either high, behind the receiver, or a combination of both.

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Conclusion

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Willis possesses franchise-altering traits as a quarterback. The unfortunate part is that no one truly knows when or if he will ever maximize those talents in the NFL.

Worst-case scenario, Willis remains a backup for the duration of his contract. Best-case scenario, Willis hones in all that talent and becomes a legitimate franchise quarterback for the Titans.

There’s also a misconception that Willis is likely a year away; the reality is that him starting in a year would probably be the best-case scenario.

This maturation process is something that could take multiple years and truly has no guarantee of working out. With that said, the skillset is undeniable and the possibilities are endless if you can find a way to fix his flaws and sharpen the tools he already has.

Maybe he figures it out sooner rather than later, and if so that would be awesome and a game-changer for the franchise. However, no one should go into the 2022 season with the expectation of seeing Willis.

Also, there’s a good chance that he could start the regular season as the No. 3 quarterback on the depth chart. If so, that shouldn’t cause any type of panic if that’s the route the team decides to go.

Ideally, you’d like for Willis to at least be the backup. That would be an incredible sign if they end up feeling comfortable with him being only one play away at all times.

But there’s also a strong possibility the Titans choose to protect their young quarterback by ensuring that it would take a legitimate catastrophe for him to see the field in 2022.

Having said all that, there are valid reasons to be optimistic about Willis, and the fanbase should be excited about what he could become after a year or two of proper grooming.

The Titans have the reigning Coach of the Year in Mike Vrabel and a staff that helped navigate an injury-plagued season into the No. 1 seed in the AFC. Play-calling might be suspect at times, but for the most part, developing and getting guys ready to go isn’t something this staff has trouble with.

Also, the Titans’ new quarterback is finally walking into a situation where he won’t have to do it all and will have the benefit of learning with minimal pressure in Year 1.

There’s no telling what Willis will become, but there’s no denying that his endless possibilities are fun to think about.

After sitting through nearly every game he played at Liberty, I must say that I’m personally a believer in the kid as long as he’s not rushed onto the field before he’s ready, which could lead to his confidence getting shattered.

If Willis ever maximizes his full potential in every aspect of his game, we’re talking about a ceiling that would be comparable to a quarterback with Lamar Jackson’s athleticism, combined with the arm talent of Josh Allen.

Only time will tell if he ever reaches anything close to that potential, but it’s clear that this is the perfect type of player to take a low-risk gamble on, even though there’s a chance that Willis will ultimately end up amounting to nothing more than a high-profile backup in the NFL.

But make no mistake about it: if Willis can develop into a polished product and take care of his weaknesses, the sky truly is the limit for him and the entire Tennessee Titans franchise.

Collegiate career and accolades

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Willis began his collegiate career at Auburn, where he struggled to get on the field as a passer and was reduced to a gadget role as a runner.

After two years in which he accumulated 240 more rushing yards than passing yards, the talented, big-armed quarterback decided it was in his best interest if he followed his coach Hugh Freeze to Liberty University.

It may have been a drastic drop-off in the level of competition and that could have led to a lack of overall notoriety, yet it was at this small school where Willis truly flourished and put himself on the map.

Willis instantly made his presence felt in Year 1 after tying the program record with six passing touchdowns against Southern Miss.

He manufactured two 300-plus-yard passing games, while also leading Liberty to their first-ever victories over ACC opponents after upsetting both Virginia Tech and Syracuse.

In total, Willis completed 64.2 percent of his passes for 2,250 passing yards and 20 touchdowns. He also led all the quarterbacks in the nation with 944 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns (seventh-most in the country for any position).

The former Liberty quarterback ended his 2020 season on a high note after winning the Cure Bowl MVP after defeating a heavily favored and highly respected Coastal Carolina team who had been undefeated up to that point.

Willis threw for 210 yards and added another 137 yards and four touchdowns on the ground en route to a thrilling 37-34 victory for the Flames.

Heading into his final season, Willis looked to pick up where he left off, and it certainly started that way.

Through his first five games of the year, Willis’ rare arm talent was on full display as he made jaw-dropping throws look routine. He also continued to showcase his dynamic ability as a runner.

In those first five starts, Willis accounted for 17 total touchdowns with zero interceptions, including a six-touchdown performance against Old Dominion.

Unfortunately, Willis got hit with a bit of a reality check over the next eight weeks as things began to break down for the Liberty quarterback. He threw 12 interceptions, including three games with three picks apiece. Five of those eight games saw him complete fewer than 60 percent of his passes.

In his only game against a ranked opponent last season (Ole Miss), Willis had his worst game of 2021, throwing three costly interceptions. What the stats don’t always tell you is how he was basically a one-man band out there.

The young quarterback was sacked nine times against Ole Miss, often due to atrocious offensive line play, something that was the case for much of the season.

Despite the limited help surrounding the young quarterback, Willis led Liberty back to another bowl game where he arguably saved his best collegiate outing for last.

The young quarterback produced a five-touchdown performance against Eastern Michigan in a 56-20 victory in the LendingTree Bowl. Willis threw for 231 yards and three touchdowns, and added another 58 yards and two scores on the ground.

The talented gunslinger finished his collegiate career after accounting for 7,307 total yards and 77 total touchdowns in 23 career starts.

Willis’ resume over his career earned him an invite to the Reese’s Senior Bowl, where all Willis did was further solidify his talents.

The Liberty product had a good week while working with and against other NFL-caliber athletes. In fact, he was voted the best quarterback on the American team by his defensive teammates because of several plays like these:

Unfortunately, on game day, the young quarterback was only allowed to display a small sample size of what he could possibly do in an NFL offense. Despite average numbers in the passing game (2-for-4 for 11 yards), Willis’ dynamic and electrifying athleticism was on full display for the world to see.

The young quarterback led both teams with 54 yards rushing, including a memorable 27-yard gallop at the end of the half to cap off his electrifying collegiate career.

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