Former teammate shares harsh truth about Malik Willis ahead of QB's first start for the Packers

Malik Willis will have the chance to start for the Green Bay Packers on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, while Jordan Love recovers from an MCL injury . But an old teammate of Willis, former Tennessee Titans left tackle Taylor Lewan, is not confident in what the quarterback can do in Green Bay.

Lewan praised who Malik Wilis is as a person, but he showed real questions about his ability to process football information on the field.

"I like Malik Willis. He's a good human being, always has a smile on his face when you see him in the locker room. Guy doesn't really know ball, unfortunately,” Lewan told Barstool Sports.

The former left tackle said that Willis might have a hard time executing Matt LaFleur’s offense.

“The thing about Malik is when it comes to checks, cans, he has a tough time seeing safeties, he has a tough time seeing where blitzes are coming from,” the former offensive lineman said. “Matt LaFleur running a very similar offense to what Arthur Smith ran in Tennessee, I don't see LaFleur making such a dramatic change where it's like, hey, we're doing Day 1 installs for this guy."

Malik Willis didn’t play under LaFleur or Smith in Tennessee, but the Titans used to run a similar version of that offense with Todd Downing as offensive coordinator.

That familiarity in terms of scheme could help Malik Willis early on, since the Packers acquired him just three weeks ago, right before the final roster cuts.

Multiple opportunities

According to Ian Rapoport, from NFL Network, Jordan Love is eyeing a week 5 return, against the Los Angeles Rams. If that is what happens, Malik Willis will have the opportunity to start three games for the Packers — Indianapolis Colts, his former team Tennessee Titans, and the Minnesota Vikings.

The Packers elevated Sean Clifford from the practice squad for gameday, and the former fifth-round pick is expected to be the backup. Green Bay will have to use all three elevations of the season for Clifford if Love really misses three games.

Malik Willis started only three games for the Titans , all of them in 2022. He has appeared in 12 NFL games, including the last two snaps of the Packers loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil last week.

Related: What Malik Willis' stats tell us about the next man up at quarterback for the Packers