‘You got the right temperament.’ Inside Dolphins QB Malik Willis’ unflappability

Miami Dolphins admin September 10, 2026 0 Comments

‘You got the right temperament.’ Inside Dolphins QB Malik Willis’ unflappability

There’s something about Malik Willis that just seems unflappable.

It’s the topic of nearly every 1-on-1 interview. His coach has consistently emphasized it. And his teammates love it

So ahead of his first Week 1 NFL start against the Las Vegas Raiders, his demeanor remained just that: cool, calm and collected.

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime, bro,” Willis said Wednesday. “Not many people get to play and start football games in the National Football League. I just want to go in there and have some fun and obviously do what I can to make sure that our team is successful, and we go out there and execute.”

As the Miami Dolphins prepare for what many believe will be a difficult season, Willis’ even-keeled personality has stood out as a necessary ingredient for this team. Spend any amount of time in conversation with the 27-year-old and it’s no secret why coach Jeff Hafley as well as general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan tapped him to be their first major signing.

“He’s just got this cool demeanor about him where guys kind of gravitate to him, where chaos could be going on around him, and he still has that same look on his face whether we’re winning or losing or what’s going on in the moment,” Hafley said, adding that trait is “very important in a leadership role. He needs that as a quarterback whether he has a really good game or whether he you know throws some bad balls and has an interception and has to bounce back.”

Which is why it’s no surprise that podcast hosts from The Pivot raved about his personality.

“You got the right temperament for this, and I absolutely believe you do, but I also believe you got the talent, the skill, the mental capacity for it,” former NFL defensive back Ryan Clark said during the Sept. 1 episode, “and I’m excited to see you get the reps that you need to be a starting quarterback.”

The root of his calmness could be difficult to pin down. Maybe it’s just the way that he was raised. Maybe it’s intrinsic to his very being. Or maybe it’s just his reaction to adversity.

Keep in mind: even before Willis arrived in the NFL, he had to overcome his fair share of road blocks that sought to derail his NFL career.

There was the arrival of quarterback Josh Jones his junior year in high school at Westlake that resulted in Willis’ new position of wide receiver. There was his time at Auburn when he was forced to sit behind quarterbacks Jarrett Stidham and Bo Nix before electing to transfer. And there was the Tennessee Titans debacle when they selected quarterback Will Levis in the second round in 2023 — one year after drafting Willis.

Asked what he would tell the kid whose collegiate future was up in the air and Willis didn’t have some grandiose response. In fact, it was measured in comparison to the personalities that have donned the aqua and orange as of late.

“I wouldn’t tell him anything — just keep doing what you’re doing,” Willis said. “God’s got a plan for you. Just keep working, just keep working, keep working and focus on what you can control. And that’s the main thing.”

That second-to-last sentence — ”just keep working” — should become a mantra for the 2026 Dolphins due to the plethora of rookies expected to contribute. As long as the team improves day-by-day, it won’t be as ugly as many people expect.

Luckily, in any case, Miami has a quarterback built for this moment.

“Each week you got to prepare so when the game comes, it’s a lot easier as far as mental gymnastics and hoops that you have to go through to execute a play,” Willis said. “We’ll get — I don’t know how many reps — 80 reps today. We’ll continue to just build and get those reps, mental reps and just continue to learn and get better. Obviously, there’s going to be mistakes, but if we can learn from those mistakes in the long run, we’ll be better off.”