This could be interesting. The New Orleans Saints are up to seven wide receivers between their practice squad and 53-man roster after signing former Cleveland Browns third-round pick Cedric Tillman. And we're still waiting to find out of Kevin Austin Jr. cleared waivers and will be returning to the practice squad, too. But what's Tillman's story?
Tillman, 26, played college football at Tennessee (arriving in 2018, one year after Alvin Kamara turned pro) and was prolific in Josh Heupel's wide-open passing attack. He broke out in 2021 with 64 catches for 1,081 yards and a dozen touchdowns before taking as step back in 2022 while dealing with an ankle injury. The Saints passed on him to pick running back Kendre Miller at No. 71 overall in the 2023
draft, but he went off the board to Cleveland just a few slots later at No. 74.
Injuries and inconsistent play have been a problem for Tillman in the NFL. He's been limited to 38 of 51 possible games since the Browns drafted him, and while his raw numbers look promising (71 receptions for 833 yards and five touchdowns), he has yet to post a 100-yard game in the NFL. In per-game averages, he's put up 1.9 receptions per game and 21.9 yards per game. Some of that can be attributed to the Browns' terrible quarterback situation. But not all of it.
Maybe a change of scenery is just what he needs. But for now, Tillman is one of three wideouts on the practice squad, along with Trey Palmer (returning from last year's team) and Jalen Moreno-Cropper. Between Chris Olave, Devaughn Vele, Bryce Lance and Barion Brown standing on top of the depth chart, it's going to be tough for any of them to see meaningful reps in Week 1.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints sign former Browns, Tennessee Vols WR to practice squad
