Malik Willis
Willis is Miami's Week 1 starting quarterback on the strength of a big free-agent deal after Tua Tagovailoa's release, valued almost entirely for his rushing floor since his passing track record as a starter is thin and unproven.
Role
He is locked in as QB1 for Miami and will play essentially every offensive snap; the only open competition on the QB depth chart is behind him for the backup job after Quinn Ewers was traded and Will Levis was waived, so there's no threat to his starting reps for now. Expect a heavy dual-threat usage pattern with designed runs and scrambles supplementing whatever the passing game produces.
Miami committed real guaranteed money to Willis and reunited him with coaches he played for in Green Bay, suggesting scheme familiarity and organizational confidence; his rushing ability gives him a weekly fantasy floor independent of how the passing game goes, and he inherits Miami's skill-position weapons.
He has a career backup's résumé with spotty accuracy and almost no volume as a full-time starter, a shaky offseason report out of minicamp raised concerns before the season even began, and he's shown almost nothing in live preseason reps (just one appearance across three games) — a small, uncertain sample for a team that isn't expected to be competitive and could shorten his leash if the passing struggles pile up.
Where analysts split
Whether Willis's legs alone make him a viable weekly fantasy option or whether his passing limitations are severe enough that Miami turns to a backup once the season's results (and Miami's competitiveness) become clear — analysts don't agree on how much rope he actually has if the offense sputters.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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