What Tennessee Titans want rookie quarterback Malik Willis to change and what they don't

With two MTSU defenders in pursuit, then-Liberty quarterback Malik Willis rolled right, spinning not once, but twice, deep in the backfield as one of them yanked the back of his jersey. Three linemen then joined the chase, pushing Willis just inches from falling out of bounds.

As he danced down the sideline, Willis' elbow extended out to his side. His palm turned upward with the ball in it, and his forearm stretched away from his body before snapping down to his opposite hip. The side-arm throw darted into the hands of an awaiting receiver.

"Question: How many quarterbacks in the country can do that?!" Liberty football tweeted following the Oct. 9 touchdown.

"Answer: 1."

The Tennessee Titans drafted Willis in hopes he’d be their quarterback of the future. With veteran Ryan Tannehill as the clear starter this season, Willis has time to settle in and work with a new set of coaches on the  throwing style — including side-arm and off-balance throws — that sets him apart.

The Titans coaches are trying to teach Willis, but they aren’t trying to change him.

“We don’t want to coach robots,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said.

What Mike Vrabel said Malik Willis needs to improve

Vrabel is fine with Willis, a 2022 third-round draft pick, throwing a side-arm or underhanded pass once in a while as long as the ball gets where it needs to go. But the rookie out of Liberty has a lot to learn before Vrabel is comfortable giving him complete control of the offense.

In two seasons at Liberty, Willis completed 62.4% of his passes for 5,117 yards, 47 touchdowns with 18 interceptions. He added 338 carries for 1,822 yards and 27 TDs for the Flames.

He also took a lot of sacks at Liberty, finishing No. 1 in the FBS with 51 in 2021.

Willis’ long-time quarterback coach Sean McEvoy described Willis’ athletic ability as “off the charts.” His timing, however, lags behind, causing him to fall to the third round.

“He made a lot of correct decisions in the spring, but the timing probably wasn’t where it needed to be, and therefore accuracy starts to go down,” Vrabel said. “I tried to explain all that — the decision-making was really good for a rookie quarterback, and timing has to improve.

“We’re hopeful that when the timing improves, the accuracy improves as well.”

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He’s also working on taking command of the huddle, a skill that’s often difficult for rookie quarterbacks. On top of learning a new offense, Willis has to learn to direct his teammates and anticipate new defensive coverages in order to communicate them to his offense.

“It starts with the operation — all those things before you touch the football,” Titans quarterback coach Pat O’Hara said. “That’s a lot when you’re not asked to do that in college.”

While Willis is learning an offense that is very different from Hugh Freeze’s run-pass-option scheme at Liberty, he’s also refining his mechanics to try to chip away at his timing problem. It’s a process he’s been working on since he was in high school.

Willis transferred schools his junior year of high school and enlisted the help of McEvoy, a private quarterback coach, to help him make the transition to playing quarterback full time, rather than switching positions frequently. The two have worked together since.

“You never really finish one thing and move on to the next,” McEvoy said. “But to consistently do what you’re getting better at is what you’re always chasing.”

Changing the mindset

Though the Titans have “thrown a lot” at Willis, according to O’Hara, none of what they’ve presented to him is an attempt to change his foundation. He’s got more “snap” than a lot of quarterbacks, McEvoy said, and Vrabel’s staff is looking to capitalize on that, rather than suppress it.

The mindset of coaches enhancing, rather than eliminating, unique throwing styles is new to football.

“There’s an idea that we just always do it like we’ve always done it,” McEvoy said. “Coaches continue to coach the way they’ve coached 25 years ago. But what I think you’re seeing is a wave of innovative young minds that are willing to search for better answers.”

For the Titans, Willis could be their answer down the road. For now, he’s absorbing information, but he’s not trying to play like anyone else.

“There are really no two quarterbacks that throw the same way,” McEvoy said. “We don’t need to make all of these quarterbacks throw the same way. That’s really limiting to the athlete himself.”

Emma Healy is a sports reporting intern for The Tennessean. Contact her at ehealy@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @_EmmaHealy_.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans: Malik Willis training camp evaluation by Mike Vrabel