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Have Titans already made decision on Malik Willis?
Tennessee Titans quarterback Malik Willis. Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Have Titans already made decision on Malik Willis?

It appears at least some within the Tennessee Titans may have already labeled young quarterback Malik Willis a bust. 

AFC South reporter Ben Arthur of Fox Sports is forecasting that Willis will be "the odd man out" among Tennessee quarterbacks assuming the club holds onto veteran Ryan Tannehill to start over 2023 second-round draft pick Will Levis, as expected. 

"Levis is going to be on the team, and the Titans don't typically keep three quarterbacks on the (53-man roster)," Arthur explained. 

Interestingly, Arthur offered this take after NBC Sports' Peter King wrote for the April 24 edition of his "Football Morning in America" column that he had heard the Titans have "lost faith in" Willis. 

Willis, a third-round choice from the 2022 draft, largely failed to impress during his rookie season, so much so that the Titans moved up in this year's player-selection process to acquire Levis. In total, Willis completed just 50.8% of 61 pass attempts for 276 yards with zero touchdowns and three interceptions. 

Nick Suss of The Tennessean noted on April 24 that the Titans would save $27M against the salary cap if they trade or release Tannehill, who is in the final year of his contract, after June 1. However, Suss later pointed out that NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on April 28 that the Titans want "Levis to be the understudy to Tannehill."

Teams that previously could've been interested in Tannehill such as the New York Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers have since moved on to other options, and there's no indication that Tennessee wants to rush Levis into action unless he performs like a revelation from springtime workouts through the final days of the preseason. 

Thus, the Titans could and maybe should make Willis available to clubs that considered taking a flier on him last year and that could still view him as a potential project for the future now that Tennessee seemingly has replaced the 23-year-old on the depth chart with Levis.

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