JACKSONVILLE – Matt LaFleur can't search for any more ways to describe what backup quarterback Malik Willis has done for the 2024 Green Bay Packers.
"It's been pretty damn impressive," LaFleur said moments after Willis' relief effort pulled out a last-second, 30-27 victory Sunday over the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium.
"Impressive is the word."
This one, Willis' third win this season in place of an injured Jordan Love, might've been the most impressive yet.
Certainly, leading a game-winning two-minute drive is the toughest task for any QB, let alone one coming off the bench. But more on that later.
This situation in general had to be harder because while Willis played two games start to finish, with the full week of preparation for both back in September (beating the Colts at home and Titans on the road), he was thrust into action in this one unexpectedly.
Love left the game early in the third quarter with a groin injury and the Packers leading, 13-10. Willis ran one third-down play, Green Bay punted, and the next time he got the ball back, the Packers were down 17-13.
But flinch is not in his vocabulary. He was mentally ready.
"You just try to stay in the game, one play at a time," Willis said of his thoughts on the sideline while Love was trying to gut it out on the field. "Try to stay composed, stay focused, what plays are going in … just stay locked into the game."
He was, busting off a 20-yard scramble on his first full drive, one play before running back Josh Jacobs took a handoff 38 yards to the house.
The Packers were back in front, and then found themselves up by 10 in the fourth quarter after a turnover set up an easy score.
Willis actually had a chance to close this one out without the last-minute dramatics. Still up by 10 with just over 10 minutes left, the Packers had moved the ball near midfield.
But a second-down slant pass to Romeo Doubs was a tad high, and Doubs got two hands on it but couldn't haul it in. Could've been a little better pass, still could've been caught.
Either way, that killed Green Bay's momentum, and Jacksonville took advantage with back-to-back scoring drives – sandwiched around a Green Bay three-and-out – to tie the game.
Now the game really was on Willis' shoulders, or more accurately, his smarts and arm.
He had 1:48 on the clock and two timeouts, but LaFleur was looking to strike. The play he called wasn't even in the game plan, but on a "keep" or bootleg pass earlier, offensive passing game coordinator Jason Vrable saw that the downfield shot might be there. So it was discussed on the sideline and put on the (mental) call sheet if needed.
Now was the time. LaFleur called a running play, with a "can" or audible to the play-action keep pass – looking for the Jaguars to give the right coverage look for the longer throw.
Willis didn't see it, so no change at the line on first down. But perhaps the conservative run to start, coupled with how close to the vest the Packers had been playing it with Willis protecting a lead, lulled the Jaguars to sleep a bit.
"I'm sure they were thinking, like, 'What the heck are these guys doing? They're going to play for overtime,'" LaFleur said. "I had a pretty good idea. The amount of single safety they were playing throughout the course of the game, there was a chance we could get it, and we got it."
On second down, same play, same "can" call, and the look was there. Willis checked to it.
The protection held up and Reed was wide open down the sideline to Willis' left. The throw was right on him, and he got all the way to the Jacksonville 15-yard line, effectively ending the game. LaFleur called it a play he'll likely "never forget."
"I try to read it true," Willis said. "J-Reed popped open and I'm glad we got it to him."
It was a remarkable finish, especially for a quarterback who gets all his practice reps on the scout team. His first-team reps during the week? "None," Willis said.
Not that it bothered him.
"Each week we've got two-minute (in practice). Even though I didn't get those reps, it's mental reps," Willis said. "See how Matt's calling it, calling each play with a purpose. I just try to stay on the same page with him."
His teammates did, too.
"I mean, we've been blessed with having a backup that can come in and really be the guy in there, really be able to create things like that," Jacobs said. "We all said in the huddle – Tucker Kraft was like, 'Man, we've been here before,' and we all know what it felt like.
"We just had the confidence in him and he came out there and did what he always do. He balled."
He also kept Jacksonville from getting another possession. QB Trevor Lawrence was playing without his top two receivers (Brian Thomas Jr. and Christian Kirk) down the stretch due to injury, but it didn't seem to matter. Overtime would've been a dicey proposition at best the way things were going.
"I'm really happy with the effort of our group, the resiliency of our group," LaFleur said. "That's tough to do when the momentum is swinging one way. It's a crazy phenomenon.
"To be able to go in there at the end of the game and make a humongous play to Jayden Reed there …"
Yeah, impressive.
