Malik Willis has played his way into a likely starting role for the 2026 season, but it will be with someone other than the Green Bay Packers, obviously.
Willis has done a tremendous job playing in relief of Jordan Love over the last two seasons, completing 70-of-89 passes (78.7 percent) for 972 yards with six touchdowns and zero interceptions. On top of that, he's added 261 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.
It's a small sample, but a very good one, especially because Willis has been thrust into some important games. He might be one of the most underrated quarterbacks available in the 2026 offseason, and one destination has made a ton of sense from the jump: The Miami Dolphins. But there might be a new contender to sign Willis in free agency with significant connections.
Cardinals will contend with Dolphins to sign Packers backup QB Malik Willis in 2026 NFL free agency
ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler recently put it out there that the Arizona Cardinals are another team with some obvious connections to Willis, who could compete with the Miami Dolphins to sign him.
The Dolphins obviously brought in Jon-Eric Sullivan and Jeff Hafley this offseason as their GM and head coach, respectively, and they had also hired Nathaniel Hackett as their quarterbacks coach before he was poached away.
Hackett was hired by new Arizona Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur as his offensive coordinator, and the combination of LaFleur and Hackett on the offensive staff in Arizona could be enough to tip the scales in their favor.
"Two teams I'll be watching to pursue Malik Willis, if they can find someone to take their current quarterbacks, are the Cardinals and Dolphins. The ties are obvious: New Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley got a head start on Willis from Green Bay, and new Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur can get intimate knowledge of Willis' game from LaFleur's brother, Matt."
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If the Dolphins and Cardinals both move on from their previous starting quarterbacks (Tua Tagovailoa, Kyler Murray), they'll be dealing with a lot of dead money on the salary cap. That could possibly complicate their pursuit of someone like Willis, but it could also make it so that he ends up getting a multi-year deal with more guaranteed money to save money on the cap this season.
One thing is certain: The Packers seem pretty likely to get a very nice compensatory pick for Willis next offseason. His average annual salary as a projected starter for this season would put him in the 3rd-round compensatory pick range, and the only downside is obviously that Green Bay will need to figure out a solution in the backup QB spot.
It makes a ton of sense for both of these teams (Cardinals and Dolphins) to go after Willis this offseason. The 2026 NFL Draft is not considered to be deep at the quarterback position at all. Getting a player who has proven himself against actual NFL defenses seems like a reasonable risk to take with a much better class of players beyond this year.