Malik Willis has been in the know on the plans for the Miami Dolphins roster, including the Jaylen Waddle trade.
One of the glaring questions that has been posed to the Miami Dolphins is what they plan to do with the roster for Malik Willis. The newly signed quarterback is set to be the starter and a hopeful franchise option for the organization, but he already has a torn-down roster to work with.
Following the trade of Jaylen Waddle, the Dolphins brought in a gaggle of unknowns to the wide receiver room alone. While it sounds like Willis was left out, the team has kept him in the loop on most things, pointing to the investment they have in the young passer.
Willis presents his own questions, especially considering he has only had six starts in the NFL in his career. He was initially drafted by the Tennessee Titans, but injuries and inconsistent play hampered his chances of being a starter.
This led to his journey, placing him with the Green Bay Packers, where he served as the backup for Jordan Love. In limited time, Willis showed flashes of brilliance, as he gunned the ball downfield and picked up chunk yardage with his feet.
In his two starts, Willis picked up 409 yards, two touchdowns, 104 rushing yards, and two rushing touchdowns.
There is clearly something special and something to be unlocked, which is why Willis boldly claimed that he was "not ready" when he first started, but he is now.
That said, it appears the plan for Willis has been laid out by the Dolphins, and they also kept him in the loop with the Waddle trade and more.
NFL insider Cameron Wolfe broke down the Willis opportunity, shining some light on the Dolphins organization placing their faith in the passer.
"A completely new era and opportunity for Malik Willis. Let's go to the Jaylen Waddle to start. A lot of the questions that people had are 'Why did you sign Malik Willis? Did he know?' From the conversations I had ... general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley gave Malik Willis a heads up ... he was in the know of this plan," Wolfe said.
Willis remains "all-in" on the plan, per Wolfe. He also made note of the organization, believing that the quarterback can be their long-term answer, and that is how they will treat the situation.
"This is a clear runway for Malik Willis with a young team to show that he can be the long-term answer, and give Jeff Hafley's squad something to believe in in year one in the rebuild as well," Wolfe said.
This is a runway for Willis to show what he can do, and even more so as he is working with a limited roster. Multiple starting quarterbacks go through similar situations and this will be the former Packers signal caller's chance to show that he can work with little to present something worthwhile.
Interestingly, Wolfe also indicated that the Dolphins are more than likely to add another passer via the draft, which is not a shock. However, that new quarterback may be brought in to act as the direct competition for Quinn Ewers, who may have to battle it out for the QB2 spot behind Willis.
If Willis can rise to the occasion and turn Tutu Atwell and Jalen Tolbert into solid pass catchers, the Dolphins will start to invest and build more into the quarterback. Resets often take a year or two to truly take hold, but Miami remains headed for a much better situation in 2027, which can lead to building around Willis in a major way.