What will the contract ceiling be for Green Bay Packers' impending free agent Malik Willis, and will the Miami Dolphins be a real suitor for him in free agency? Those questions will be answered in less than two weeks.
Free agency will begin on March 11th, but unofficially it starts on March 9th when teams can begin negotiating deals. The Dolphins are not expected to be an active participant when the market opens, but the quarterback, specifically Willis, will be one worth monitoring.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Dolphins will definitely be in the mix for the free agent
Miami Dolphins expected to pursue top free agent quarterback Malik Willis
Miami's interest will be salary-motivated. If reports and speculation of a $40 million deal are correct, Miami may be in the mix. Spending $20 million a season is workable, but still borders on being a bit unrealistic.
Over the course of the last few weeks, Willis' speculated deal has been in the neighborhood of $30 million per season, but Fowler is pushing that number down.
"Willis' market has been a prominent topic this week. But a team offering him $30-plus million per year doesn't appear realistic. Many front offices believe the more accurate comp is Justin Fields' deal with the Jets last year (two years, $40 million). "Jeremy Fowler
Fowler said that cap inflation could raise that number, but his feeling from the combine is that teams realistically don't see that big of a contract for Willis.
Miami's head coach and GM know what Willis can and can't do, but that doesn't change the fact that he has just six starts over his four-year NFL career and just three starts in his two years with the Packers.
That's a lot of money for a guy with so little tape as a starter. Sure, he looked good, but teams that sign him are paying him blindly with the hopes that he can develop quickly.
Willis would bring the mentality that Jeff Hafley wants on the team. He earned the respect of his Packers teammates and would bring familiarity to Miami regarding how they want to do things, but is that alone worth the big money? Probably not, and Sullivan knows that he can't afford to get into a bidding war with other teams.
Despite Fowler's belief that Miami will be in on Willis, Dan Graziano believes that the dead -money hit for Tua Tagovailoa will limit Miami's ability to realistically make an offer that will be accepted.