Malik Willis continues to find new ways to look bad as the Miami Dolphins' starting quarterback. Jeff Hafley will keep propping him up, maybe even deflecting some of the blame from his starter, but Willis isn't improving.
Willis has regressed every week this year. We have made excuses for him. "He is here to change the culture." "He isn't getting help from his offensive line." "The Dolphins WRs are horrible." Maybe it's time to start looking at the problem being Willis.
In Week 5, the Dolphins' running game was working well; the blocking wasn't horrible, but Willis was. The only time Willis could lead the team was when he ran the ball. Everything else wasn't good.
Miami Dolphins' Jon-Eric Sullivan may have made a mistake signing Malik Willis
There has been a lot of debate over whether the Dolphins should use their first-round pick in the 2027 draft on a quarterback or possibly Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith. There are those who will argue that Willis' job would be much easier with a top WR, but he has to get accurate first.
The two interceptions in the first half were bad, but the three passes into the endzone early in the second half were far worse. His accuracy is questionable, and after five weeks, Willis is still not seeing wide-open receivers. He is still failing to make quick decisions with the football, instead allowing the defense to recover from broken coverage.
In Week 5, Willis looked more like the player he did while with the Titans than the three-game starter in Green Bay. The only drive where he showed any promise was when the Bengals were down 28-10 and relaxed their defense. It was enough to make his day look a little more like a backup quarterback, because that's how he played.
Willis' Week 5 stats won't look horrible outside of the two interceptions, but he didn't turn up his game until midway through the fourth quarter, with the game already out of reach. His TD throw to Kevin Coleman brought the team to within 10, but it was too little, too late.
Dolphins fans know the 2026 season won't produce wins. Willis will have an entire season to figure out how to play consistently, but Sullivan can't ignore the position next year. With either his first or second pick, Sullivan has to commit to a player who can become a franchise QB. Five games may not be enough to say Willis won't be, but it's not five games. His time with the Titans and Packers counts, too.
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