Tennessee receiver Cedric Tillman is the ninth player from the SEC selected by Browns GM among 26 draft picks (so far) in four drafts.
Receiver Cedric Tillman and defensive tackle Siaki Ika continue major changes at two Browns’ position groups
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Takeaways from second and third rounds of NFL draft …
The Browns stayed pat with their two picks in the third round and used them to continue a rather dramatic transformation of two position groups.
Eschewing their top need at defensive end both times, the Browns added yet another receiver at No. 74, big and physical Cedric Tillman of Tennessee, and then concluded their first night of action in this year’s draft with the selection at No. 98 of massive defensive tackle Siaki Ika of Baylor.
Receiver might have been a high priority at the beginning of this transaction season, but the additions of a pair of veteran speedsters, Elijah Moore through trade with the Jets, and Marquise Goodwin in free agency, seemed to fill it.
Nevertheless, GM Andrew Berry and his staff, which included for the first time contributions from new assistant GM Catherine Raiche, liked Tillman ahead of edge rushers Zach Harrison of Ohio State, Isaiah McGuire of Missouri, Byron Young of Tennessee and YaYa Diaby of Louisville, who were still on the board.
At 6-3 3/8 and 213 pounds, Tillman is the biggest of the Browns’ mainstream wideouts. They have 12 now on the roster. His 4.54 speed ranks about sixth among the Browns’ receivers.
“A big-sized receiver, a ton of strength, really consistent hands and was very productive when he was on the field for Tennessee,” Berry said.
Assistant GM Glenn Cook added that the Browns didn’t trade size for speed when taking Tillman, “but that’s definitely his strength.”
Ika is the fourth defensive tackle added since the Browns hired defensive-line guru Jim Schwartz to replace Joe Woods as defensive coordinator. He measured a shade under 6-3 and 335 pounds at the NFL Combine, and played 20 pounds heavier at times at Baylor.
Ika joins free agent pickup Dalvin Tomlinson (6-3, 324) to give the Browns almost 700 pounds in the interior of their revamped defensive line. Berry said “absolutely” he expects both behemoths to be on the field together because of the nimbleness of both.
Schwartz’s influence in the pick was evident when Berry added, “I’ll call it a ‘Schwartzism.’ [Schwartz] wants guys to be as big as they possibly can, without sacrificing movement. For some guys at defensive tackle, that may be 305 and others that may be 355. Siaki has been anywhere from 335 to 355, depending on what the scheme required. For us, we’ll work with him when he gets on site for what we’re going to ask him to do, but he has played effectively throughout that weight range.”
Wide Receiver U.
For decades, Tennessee was considered the original Wide Receiver U. for pouring 10 receivers into the NFL via the first round of the draft. After a long drought, the wide-open Tennessee air raid offense is producing again.
Tillman was the Vols’ No. 1 receiver in 2021 with 1,081 yards and 12 touchdowns, but his senior year was ruined by a high ankle injury suffered in Game 3 against Akron. Tillman worked his way back onto the field and played a total of six games (37 receptions, 417 yards, three touchdowns), but gave way to smaller and faster Jalin Hyatt, who produced 15 touchdowns this year.
Ironically, Hyatt was taken a notch ahead of Tillman at No. 73 by the New York Giants.
“I wasn’t expecting [us] to go back-to-back,” Tillman said. “I’m blessed and happy for Hyatt. That’s my brother and we’ve been through a lot together. I’m proud of him and he’s gonna ball out and I plan on doing the same.”
Everyone knows that Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and his family have been long-time benefactors to the Tennessee football program. Tillman is the first Vol drafted by the Browns in the 12th year of the Haslam ownership. Backup quarterback Josh Dobbs also played for the Vols, but he wasn’t drafted by the Browns.
“I have [been exposed to Haslam at Tennessee],” Tillman said. “He’s come to practice quite a bit of times. Obviously, there’s a relationship there.”
Berry joked that Haslam didn’t provide a personal scouting report on Tillman, “but Jimmy certainly knew a lot about Cedric, given his time at Tennessee.”
Big and nimble
It’s interesting that the Browns are counting on both Tomlinson and Ika to be more than just space-eating, run-stoppers in the middle of the revamped defensive line.
“I don’t think either Dalvin or Siaki was [acquired] with a specific goal of just stopping the run,” Berry said. “I think Jim [Schwartz] will tell you, our emphasis is really on getting after the quarterback and really stopping the run with numbers in the box, as opposed to just bigger bodies or size. When you can find guys that you think can be multidimensional players with size, that is certainly an added bonus.”
The inescapable NFL comp of Ika is Vita Vea of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Vea, a first-round pick of the Bucs in 2018 and a one-time Pro Bowler, has been a disruptive force and not just a run-stopper at 347 pounds. Both are of Polynesian descent.
“I don’t think of most players in terms of comparisons, because I think oftentimes when people do that it may be the school they went to, their size, their ethnicity,” Berry said. “I think most players strike me as unique, so I think it would be unfair to compare Siaki to Vita at this point in his career. Certainly, they are both bigger guys that have a lot of power to the game. If he turns out like Vita Vea, we’d be very pleased.”
Berry said a couple things stood out about Ika.
“I think the thing that stood out with him was just his energy,” Berry said. “He is a very energetic, big personality. And that comes across with the coaching staff, it came across in his meeting with me, came across with our support staff. He made a really favorable impression.
“I think one of the most impressive things is -- I joked with him on his visits, ‘Ok, what is a 340-pounder doing in the Big 12?’” Berry said. “That’s the worst possible conference for you to be in. I think what was impressive is just a guy who could keep going, keep going, keep going in a conference that the offenses are really predicated on space. I think it was in those moments that we were able to see him. Even though he was in a different scheme, do some of the things that we would really ask him to do here, which is certainly different from what he did at Baylor. I think his motor stood out, his power stood out and we do think that he has under-stated pass rush.”
That SEC pipeline
Tillman is the ninth player taken from the Southeastern Conference among Berry’s 26 draft picks as Browns GM. Ika also has an SEC connection. He played two years at LSU and was a member of the Joe Burrow national championship team before following defensive coordinator Dave Aranda to Baylor.
Berry has selected six players from the Big 12 Conference and four from the B1G Ten.
Whither the defensive end shortage
By bypassing several defensive ends in the third round, the Browns would seem compelled to add one or two among their remaining six draft picks on Saturday (two in the fourth round, two in the fifth, one each in the sixth and seventh).
Among the ends still available are Adetomiwa Adebawore of Northwestern, Isaiah McGuire of Missouri, K.J. Henry of Clemson and Karl Brooks of Bowling Green.
