New deal means Tennessee Titans likely to sign Malik Willis soon

The Tennessee Titans always sign their rookies, but they rarely sign them quickly.

Whether timing matters to you or not, it seems like the Titans will have their rookie class signed in the near future.

The only rookies that haven’t signed their contracts are second-round pick Roger McCreary and third-round pick Malik Willis. Most of the time the only hold-ups in these deals are both sides posturing over how much guaranteed money the players will get, but with a flurry of second-round picks signing their contracts McCreary shouldn’t be far away.

If anyone was going to be able to negotiate more guaranteed money than projected simply because of the position they play and their value relative to the class, it would have been Malik Willis. Despite being drafted in the third round, he was one of the first quarterbacks drafted and there is a good chance that he is the guy the Tennessee Titans want to take over in 2024 (possibly 2023).

However, both sides should have a pretty good idea of what the contract should look like after today.

Tennessee Titans blueprint for a Malik Willis contract

While Malik Willis was one of the first quarterbacks drafted, he obviously wasn’t the first quarterback drafted and he wasn’t the first one drafted in the third round. That was Desmond Ridder who was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons 12 picks before the Tennessee Titans selected.

His deal was finalized Tuesday morning:

With that in place and the second-round picks all signing quickly, it would make sense that the Tennessee Titans wrap up their rookie class before training camp starts next week.

In case anyone is worried about a deal not getting done or this being a sign of anything negative, put those thoughts to bed. Not only have the Titans coaching staff publicly praised most of their rookie class (which doesn’t always happen with this coaching staff), but everyone has been glowing in their praise for Willis and McCreary specifically.

Other guys like Theo Jackson and Chig Okonkwo have been standouts as well, but Willis has looked like a natural leader and McCreary is going to compete for a spot in a talented group of cornerbacks.