What to Expect from Malik Willis

With Malik Willis set to make his first career NFL Start in Week 8 for the Titans, I wanted to re-post my pre-draft breakdown. This was at a time when there were discussions about Willis potentially being taken in the first round (he was eventually selected in the 3rd round, 86th overall). So please forgive all the Draft talk. That said, you can expect to see a lot of what’s described below in Sunday’s game against the Texans.

Pre-Draft Breakdown

It’s an underwhelming year for quarterback prospects in the NFL Draft. There is no consensus #1 and projections for the amount of quarterbacks taken in the first round have ranged from 0 to as many as 5. Projections for Liberty QB Malik Willis fit that profile as well, with some believing he could be taken by the Lions with the #2 overall pick, and some believing he won’t be taken in the first round at all.

I can’t tell you exactly what will happen. What I can tell you is that the team that takes Willis will be doing so based on his potential and the hope that he can refine his game substantially in the NFL. Because as it stands right now, he might have some dynamic physical abilities, but his game does not showcase the subtle traits needed to play the position with consistency at the next level.

Vision and Coverage Recognition

This area is my biggest concern with Willis. His ability to quickly recognize and react to coverage is inconsistent. And there were some egregious examples of Willis not seeing defenders ahead of the throw during his time at Liberty, as shown here:

On this next play, the defense used some post-snap disguise to get Willis. The boundary cornerback at the top of the screen appeared to be playing off initially but ended up sitting in the flat post-snap. The safety to his side raced over top of him. Willis didn’t recognize it, though, and threw this ball as if the flat-corner wasn’t there:

A disguise, yes. But not an uncommon or especially complex one, especially in the NFL. Had Willis been eyeing the safeties after the snap, that coverage would have been more easily recognizable.

There were even more examples of Willis not seeing or anticipating open receivers. The below play came with about 3 minutes and 40 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter of a tie game against Syracuse.

First, notice how all defenders were within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage at the snap and the middle of the field appeared to be wide open:

That should have raised some red flags for Willis. This was a cover-0 blitz look. And that’s exactly what it ended up being:

With the middle of the field wide open, Liberty had the perfect route called - a post out of the slot to Willis’ right. Willis should have been able to easily confirm the coverage post-snap and then hit his receiver. The defensive back covering the post even turned his hips to the outside, leaving the middle of the field that much more open: