Summary
The Miami Dolphins appear to have found their next quarterback. Malik Willis is headed to South Florida on a three-year deal worth $67.5 million, a contract that includes $45 million in guarantees, as first reported Monday by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The move comes shortly after Miami’s plan to release Tua Tagovailoa, the former fifth overall pick, became public — a sharp turn that signals a clear reset at the game’s most important position.
Willis, who has made six starts in his NFL career, earns a major payday after reviving his trajectory over the past two seasons in Green Bay, working behind Jordan Love and delivering highly efficient production in limited opportunities.
Miami’s quarterback depth chart effectively forced urgency. Once Tagovailoa’s pending release became the direction, the Dolphins were left with Quinn Ewers, described as an unproven 2025 draft pick — and the sense around the league is that a new regime that didn’t draft him was unlikely to hand him the job for 2026.
That made Willis the kind of target teams chase early: a quarterback with starter traits, recent production that looks sustainable inside a stable system, and enough upside to justify a multi-year commitment.
The headline number is significant — but the guarantee is the real statement.
- Length: 3 years
- Total value: $67.5 million
- Guaranteed: $45 million (reported as fully guaranteed)
For Miami, the structure reads like a bet on a quarterback they believe can be more than a stopgap.
Willis’ résumé is unusual for this pay tier: only six career starts, but a statistical profile from his Green Bay stretch that jumps off the page.
Across the last two seasons with the Packers, he went 2–1 as a starter, completing 78.7% of his passes for 972 yards and six touchdowns, while adding 261 rushing yards and three more scores on the ground.
Last season specifically, he made one start and appeared in four games, completing 30 of 35 passes for 422 yards and three touchdowns — a level of efficiency that helped reshape how teams viewed him after his early career.
Just as notable: he hasn’t thrown an interception since 2022, his rookie season.
Willis entered the league with expectations, then struggled to establish himself during two years with the Tennessee Titans, where he was widely viewed as a draft disappointment.
His time in Green Bay changed that narrative. Behind Love, he stabilized his mechanics, looked more decisive, and showed the dual-threat element that once made him such a compelling prospect. That rebound is what turned him into one of the most intriguing quarterback options on the market — and what made Miami a logical landing spot.
The Dolphins had been seen as a leading destination for Willis because of reported connections to head coach Jeff Hafley and general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan. The move now gives Miami its chosen quarterback, aligning the front office and coaching staff around a single direction rather than a temporary competition.
Signing Willis answers the biggest question — but it also raises the next one: how quickly can Miami build the offense around him?
Willis brings mobility and high efficiency, but he is still relatively untested as a week-to-week starter. Miami’s immediate offseason job becomes surrounding him with enough support — protection, playmakers, and a system tailored to his strengths — to make this gamble look like a long-term solution rather than a short-term swing.
