The Green Bay Packers extended their home-opener win streak to 12 games, with contributions from many key players, including one they acquired less than three weeks ago.
Malik Willis struggled early in his NFL career. The Packers traded a seventh-round pick due to their issues with backup quarterback play in training camp and the preseason. When Jordan Love went down at the end of Week 1, more than a few fans and analysts grumbled about the move for Willis and wondered aloud if the Packers ought to immediately seek out someone more experienced like Ryan Tannehill. But Willis was everything Matt LaFleur and the Packers could have asked for on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts.
The Packers had a clear plan going into the game: run the ball on offense and force turnovers on defense. They executed this to near perfection, rushing for 261 yards on 53 total runs and taking the ball away on defense three times.
Another part of the plan was to make life as easy as possible for their new fill-in QB. LaFleur didn’t want to burden Willis with too much during his first start in two seasons. It was clear from the outset that leaning on Josh Jacobs and the running game to carry the brunt of the workload was the strategy.
Still, Willis did just enough with his arm to keep the Colts’ defense honest when he needed to, as evidenced by his 39-yard bomb to Romeo Doubs in the fourth quarter.
With a 10-point lead, the Packers let Willis air it out a bit, and it paid off. He completed 12 of 14 passes for 122 yards, averaging 8.7 yards per attempt. Not only did he eclipse the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career (in three prior starts), he also threw the first touchdown pass of his career, connecting with Dontayvion Wicks in the first quarter.
Willis perfectly placed the pass where only Wicks could catch it, allowing the receiver to easily turn and jog into the end zone. Willis finished with the second-highest passer rating in Week 2, posting a 126.8. Only Kyler Murray finished with a higher rating with a perfect 158.3.
One of the biggest questions surrounding Willis during the week was whether he had enough knowledge of the playbook to command the offense, considering he had only been with the team for less than three weeks.
According to LaFleur, he passed that test with flying colors:
I don’t think you guys can appreciate or even comprehend the task that Malik Willis [had] … This guy got here three weeks ago. For him to go out there and command our offense, we still had a lot of long calls, we had shifts, motions, a ton of different run schemes.
There was a lot put on his plate. And for him to go out there and do what he did today, I think that speaks volumes of who he is as a person and the work he put in. I’m just super proud of him.
LaFleur also mentioned that they added new plays into the playbook to build an effective attack around Willis, which he executed almost flawlessly.
Players don’t often learn an NFL playbook quickly, but Willis has seemingly picked up enough to lead the Packers to a victory in a game that didn’t feel as close as the 16-10 score indicated. He was in complete command in the huddle, getting the plays out cleanly, with no delay-of-game penalties or wasted timeouts trying to get the play call out and get everyone in position.
Additionally, the NFL has emphasized illegal formation penalties this season. However, the Packers committed no such infractions in this game, partly thanks to Willis helping his teammates get into the correct positions. It’s impressive for someone who Green Bay traded for in August. That shows Willis possesses a high football IQ and can step in effectively if the Packers find themselves in a similar situation again.
One of the most impressive aspects of Willis’ performance on Sunday was that he played virtually mistake-free football – an essential trait for any backup quarterback. He never put the ball in danger during his 14 dropbacks and made smart decisions when it was time to tuck the ball and run.
As a quarterback who rushed for over 2,000 yards during his college career, people have sometimes criticized Willis for giving up on his progressions too early in favor of a scramble. However, on Sunday, he rushed just six times for 41 yards. A few were designed runs, and others resulted from pressure forcing him to roll out and run.
He even made a good decision on the now-viral “puke ball.” In the second quarter, when center Josh Myers vomited on the ball pre-snap, Willis recognized it and opted not to throw it, choosing to run instead. While it may seem like a minor (and kinda gross) point, it shows Willis’ awareness of everything happening around him. Compared to his three rookie-season starts, the game seems to have slowed down for him.
Every team needs a good backup quarterback, yet few teams have a reliable one. There are only so many practice reps to go around, and many teams don’t devote them to getting their backup quarterback ready to play. The Packers have been searching for a reliable backup QB since Matt Flynn threw six touchdowns against the Detroit Lions and led comebacks against the Dallas Cowboys (sorry, Scott Tolzien and Brett Hundley).
It might not be too soon to put Willis’ performance in the pantheon of top backup quarterback performances in Packers history. He didn’t light up the stat sheet, and the team ran for an impressive amount of yards. Still, sometimes a player just needs to do his job. On Sunday, Malik Willis did that and more.
