New Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley emphasizes his desire for quarterback Malik Willis to be himself, focusing on his personal qualities and development rather than imposing specific performance expectations. Hafley highlights Willis's humility, leadership, and work ethic while acknowledging the young quarterback's need to grow. The coach also discusses Quinn Ewers and his potential.
There might be big expectations on new Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis based on the two-year commitment the organization has made to him with his free agent contract, but it's not head coach Jeff Hafley who's going to add to them.
Hafley was with Willis in Green Bay the past two years along with new Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan, and what they saw from Willis is what convinced them to bring him along to Miami.“I want Malik to be himself," Hafley said at the owners meetings in Arizona on Tuesday morning. "There's nothing I'm going to sit here and say that I want this, this, this and this. I want Malik to come in and be himself."I don't want him to change on or off the field because he's an incredible human. I think he's got great leadership qualities that guys will rally around. I've seen it. These guys have seen it, and I've seen we can do on the field. He needs to develop. He needs to continue to grow. But I'm not gonna put any expectation on what I want to see from him.” Hafley offered a different approach when he was asked what it was about Willis as a person that he likes so much. “Why do I like him as a person? Just you guys, when you start to be around him, you'll see it," Hafley said. "He's humble. He's got this way about him where he connects with his teammates. It's the way he treats people, it's the way he works, which to me is probably more important than anything. "I just I think the more you guys are around him, the more he's around his teammates, everybody will start to see it, and I'm going to be excited for you guys all to experience that, the type of person that he is, the type of worker that he is, the way he'll treat the media, the way he'll treat his teammates, and the way he'll be with his coaches and his teammates."Because of that commitment to Willis, which includes $45 million guaranteed over the next two years, it's basically a foregone conclusion that he'll be the starting quarterback in 2026 and again in 2027 barring unforeseen circumstances. This has not played well with every Dolphins fans, some of whom would have liked to see 2025 seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers get a shot after his performance in the final three games last season.“Yeah, do everything in your power like any other player to show us that you are the best player at your position, and then our job is to play the best player to win games," Hafley said. "And that's exactly what I would say to Quinn. I like Quinn. Quinn is one of the first guys that reached out to me when I got the job. I thought Quinn did a really good job at the end of the year, but I would say that to any player. I mean, go out there and work, do everything in your power to improve, take the coaching, learn the scheme, and show us and show the team that you're the best player, and our job is to play it.”ALAIN POUPART Alain Poupart is the publisher/editor of Miami Dolphins On SI and host of the All Dolphins Podcast. Alain has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 for various publications and media outlets, including Dolphin Digest, The Associated Press and the Dolphins team website. In addition to being a credentialed member of the Miami Dolphins press corps, Alain has covered three Super Bowls , the annual NFL draft, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Scouting Combine. During his almost 40 years in journalism, which began at the now-defunct Miami News, Alain has covered practically every sport at one time or another, from tennis to golf, baseball, basketball and everything in between. The career also included time as a copy editor, including work on several books, such as "Still Perfect," an inside look at the Miami Dolphins' 1972 perfect season. A native of Montreal, Canada, whose first language is French, Alain grew up a huge hockey fan but soon developed a love for all sports, including NFL football. He has lived in South Florida since the 1980s.
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