VFL Cedric Tillman Shines In NFL Preseason
When head coach Josh Heupel took over at the University of Tennessee before the 2021 season, they didn't have much in returning offensive production. The Vols finished 109th in scoring offense during the 2020 season and didn't have a wide receiver cross over 500 yards. Their top target that year, current Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Josh Palmer, was a third-round draft pick that offseason, meaning the most productive returner in the wide receiver room was Velus Jones Jr., who had 280 yards in 2020.
Heading into training camp, Heupel needed to find a viable option for Michigan transfer quarterback Joe Milton III, though Virginia Tech transfer Hendon Hooker ended up taking the starting job a few games into the year before having an illustrious two-year career with the Vols. The man for the job turned out to be then-redshirt junior Cedric Tillman, a player with a lot of ability but who also only had eight career catches. That didn't deter Tennessee's coaches from seeing the positives - Tillman took a starting job and ran with it, posting 1,081 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns in 2021, earning All-SEC first-team honors. Tillman set the school record for consecutive games with a touchdown reception, 7.
Injuries derailed his 2022 season before it could even really start, but Tillman still had 37 catches for 417 yards and three scores in six starts. The Cleveland Browns took a flyer on him at pick No. 74, hoping he could eventually crack their wide receiver rotation once they make contract decisions on current wideouts Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones. If the first week of preseason is any indication, the Browns made a wise decision.
Cleveland Browns WR Cedric Tillman diving for a first down during the Hall-of-Fame preseason game against the New York Jets in Canton, Ohio, on August 3, 2023. (Photo by Ken Blaze of USA Today Sports)
He had two catches for 35 yards on Thursday night, which won't lead talk shows tomorrow. However, he did some things from a scheme perspective that let us know he's on the right trajectory. Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski runs a west-coast offense derived from former Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak. Unlike Tennessee, there isn't always tons of opportunity after the catch. You've got to understand how to read soft zones, man leverage, and know your route depths. Tillman did that twice on Thursday and continues to excel in those concepts in training camp. We've seen several videos of him beating defenders over the middle of the field, working to find his opening.
The Vols' teachings have also already done him good in his professional career. Say what you want about Tennessee's route tree, but they teach receivers how to work outside the numbers better than any other program in America. Tillman laid out for a diving snag near the goal line in practice the other day, and he got the space by attacking the defensive back's outside shoulder, a day-one individual drill for the Vols.
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