Sometimes they say when one door closes, another opens. It just swung wide open for a former Tennessee Volunteer to walk through in Cleveland.
The Browns traded WR Donovan Peoples-Jones to the Detroit Lions on Tuesday shortly before the NFL trade deadline. As such, Cedric Tillman stands to be the primary benefactor from the move.
Cleveland selected the former Tennessee standout in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft (74th overall pick). Tillman had a knack for making big plays in Knoxville, with his streak of seven straight games with a touchdown from October 16 to December 30, 2021 setting a school record. He caught 109 passes for 1622 yards with 17 touchdowns in 44 games with 21 starts while at Tennessee.
It was believed that Tillman would give the Browns a sure-handed deep threat on the outside. However, his path to the field was blocked by group of talented wide receivers in Amari Cooper, Elijah Moore, and Peoples-Jones. So far through seven games, Tillman has seen the field in a very limited fashion. He's only logged 45 offensive snaps and made one catch.
Now, those numbers appear set to increase sharply. Peoples-Jones logged no less than 51 snaps in a game this season with an average of 68.3 snaps per game. Those snaps will have to be picked up by someone.
Tillman and Marquise Goodwin are listed as the backup wide receivers to Cooper and Moore on the Browns' official depth chart. David Bell is the only other receiver on the roster. As such, it comes down one of those three to fill the void created by Peoples-Jones' departure.
Tillman appears to bet best suited to take on that role. He's 6'3" and, quite frankly, has a better skillset and a higher ceiling than the other two. With sure hands, good speed, and a good frame, Tillman makes the most sense to get the first crack at stepping up.
Tillman impressed in training camp and in the preseason. If he can return to that form with increased opportunity, then Browns and Vol fans could have a lot to cheer about on Sundays moving forward.
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