The Cleveland Browns have tried and failed to bring in some big-name skill position players over the years, and the few times they have been successful, stars like Odell Beckham Jr. fail to recapture their past glory as a result of the miasma of Browns ineptitude.
Since Beckham left town, only Amari Cooper (for one of his two seasons) has given the Browns a truly above-average wide receiver threat on the outside. While one of their many developing young players isn't quite at that level just yet, one of them may be on a similar pathway in the near future.
Cedric Tillman has partially answered questions about the Browns' poor wide receiver room in the 2025 season, as he has found the end zone twice and looked every bit like the physical X target Cleveland thought he would be during his college days at Tennessee.
Tillman has quite a ways to go before he approaches Beckham as a receiver, but if he can stay healthy and keep performing at this level, there's no reason why he can't have more success in Cleveland than No. 13 did.
Cedric Tillman could become a more reliable version of Odell Beckham Jr. for Browns
Tillman has been waiting years for this breakout, as the former Tennessee product needed some time to adjust from the very rudimentary Volunteers offense to the complexities of a Kevin Stefanski playbook. The fruits of his labor are finally being collected in the 2025 season.
After getting virtually no production with Deshaun Watson as the quarterback, both Jameis Winston last year and Joe Flacco this year have been targeting Tillman early and often. Tillman's production, mirroring (or exceeding, depending on perspective) what Jeudy is amassing, has to be very encouraging.
If the Browns are going to sustain their momentum from an upset win against the Green Bay Packers, Tillman will need to play the best football of his life. The combination of the lack of depth at wide receiver and the suspect running game places an even greater emphasis on Tillman winning on the outside.
While it would be hyperbolic to declare Tillman as a player that is equal to or greater than Beckham, even during his Browns nadir, the fact that Tillman's development appears to be for real suggests that his production will continue to ascend into that four-digit yards tier once Cleveland gets a more reliable quarterback situation.