Malik Willis, the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, is becoming a notable figure in the upcoming NFL free agency due to his limited but promising play history. Ahead of the March 9 free agency kickoff, analysts are comparing Willis’s potential market value with past quarterbacks who had minimal starting experience but attracted significant contracts, including Brock Osweiler.
Examining Historical Comparisons for Willis’s Market Value
ESPN’s Ben Solak highlighted the challenge of evaluating Willis’s worth because of his brief starting record. While Willis was once considered a sleeper signing, Solak emphasized that he is now anticipated to be highly sought after by teams seeking a young quarterback with upside. The scarcity of similar cases among free agents with few career starts complicates predicting his contract.
Solak initially considered Jimmy Garoppolo as a potential benchmark due to his limited starts early in his career and subsequent lucrative deal with the San Francisco 49ers. However, Garoppolo’s undefeated streak as a starter and different playing style made the comparison imperfect for Willis’s situation.
Instead, Solak proposed Brock Osweiler as a more fitting reference point. Osweiler, drafted in the second round in 2012, did not become a starter until four years later with the Denver Broncos. After seven starts, he secured a four-year contract worth $72 million with the Houston Texans in 2016, a deal that later proved costly for Houston as they traded him away amid questions about his long-term viability as a starter.
How Osweiler’s Contract Influences Willis’s Projected Salary
Osweiler’s contract averaged $18 million annually, making up about 8.6 percent of the NFL salary cap at that time. With the salary cap now expected to exceed $300 million, a similar percentage would suggest an annual value of roughly $26 million for Willis. Solak indicated this estimate aligns with the current quarterback market, positioned between deals like Justin Fields’s two-year, $20 million per year contract with the New York Jets and Baker Mayfield’s $33 million per year agreement with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Willis, 26, spent the 2025 season as primarily a backup to Jordan Love on the Packers. Over four game appearances, he completed 85.7 percent of his pass attempts for 422 yards and three touchdowns, finishing with a 145.5 passer rating and a 93.1 quarterback rating. As a runner, he contributed 123 yards on 22 carries and scored two rushing touchdowns, though he also recorded two fumbles, one of which was lost.
Teams Showing Interest Amid Free Agency Uncertainty
The Miami Dolphins are among the teams reportedly interested in Willis, especially given the uncertainty that surrounds their current quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, following a recent franchise reset. Miami’s acquisitions of personnel with ties to Green Bay have heightened speculation about a possible interest in Willis, although no formal offers have been made at this stage.
As free agency nears, Willis’s combination of passing efficiency, mobility, and limited professional exposure positions him as one of the more divisive quarterback prospects available, leaving NFL teams and analysts closely watching how his market will develop.
Analyst Perspective on Willis’s Emerging Status
Willis is no longer a sleeper signing,
ESPN’s Ben Solak wrote.
His services will be hotly sought after by teams looking for a still-young gamble at a franchise quarterback. But just how hotly? It’s hard to find a historical proxy for ‘highly valued free agent with six career starts at quarterback.’
This feels like the correct value for Willis,
Solak added, referring to the $26 million per year range that fits within the current quarterback salary landscape and acknowledges Willis’s potential.
