Titans QB Will Levis Not Expected to Play on Saturday Night vs. Vikings
The Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings will meet in each team’s second preseason game of the summer on Saturday evening.
Kickoff is slated for 7 PM inside U.S. Bank Stadium, and the there are plenty of crucial storylines for each team surrounding the rosters.
Titans QB Will Levis Not Expected to Play vs. Vikings
Will Levis was one of those big storylines out of Tennessee after being selected in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft this spring. He joined veteran Ryan Tannehill and 2022 third-round pick Malik Willis in the QB room.
However, it appears that Levis will not play in tonight’s game against the Vikings. Caroline Fenton of radio station 102.5 The Game in Nashville tweeted on Saturday morning, “Source: Will Levis will NOT play in the[Titans] second preseason game tonight at Minnesota.”
Levis, who played college football both at Penn State and Kentucky, spent four seasons between the two programs, throwing for a total of 5876 yards and 46 TDs compared to just 25 interceptions. He completed passes at a clip of 64.9%.
Levis left the Titans’ and Vikings’ joint practice on Thursday with an apparent injury, but there has been no diagnosis of what exactly happened in the days since. It appears that the injury is significant enough to keep him sidelined on Saturday evening.
Meanwhile, this allows the second-year QB, Willis, to take all the snaps in this week’s game. Willis has been a topic of controversy essentially ever since he entered the NFL level. He started three games last season for the Titans, but those games did not go particularly well for him. He completed just 50.8% of his passes over the course of the season for 276 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions.
Interestingly, Willis has also been connected to the Vikings ever since he entered the NFL Draft. Many folks banged the table for Minnesota to select him in the 2022 Draft, but ultimately, the Vikings passed on him a couple times.
Those inquiries haven’t stopped in the year-plus that Willis has been in the NFL, though. Those rumblings only grew louder with Tennessee’s selection of Levis in this spring’s draft. In fact, our own Kyle Joudry made the argument for the Vikings trading for Willis just a month ago:
“Kevin O’Connell — who, like Willis, was a 3rd-round selection — may welcome the chance to work alongside the young passer. Lots of coaches like to think they have what it takes to let a player shine, but perhaps O’Connell (the QB-turned-coach) is the one capable of doing so with Willis. Plus, Kwesi has shown with several of his trades that he likes bringing in young, upside players who are still on their rookie deals. Willis fits the bill.
Combining the trade history, Cousins uncertainty, and GM-to-GM relationship makes Malik Willis someone worth monitoring. Admittedly, Minnesota may not have room to bring Willis in unless they moved on from Nick Mullens, but the Tennessee passer is certainly someone to watch if an injury arises or either backup majorly struggles during the preseason.”
Perhaps the Vikings are interested in potentially swinging a deal for Willis, and that would make tonight an audition. However, regardless of Minnesota’s interest in the young QB, it seems that they will be seeing a ton of him in tonight’s game.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.