The Browns traded top WR Amari Cooper ($6,000) to the Bills last week, which shook up the team’s depth chart. On Sunday, they lost QB Deshaun Watson for the season to an Achilles injury, and also lost Dorian Thompson-Robinson ($4,700) to a finger injury. Jameis Winston ($5,200) was inactive and the emergency QB, but was forced to play at the end of the game. He could start this week depending on how quickly Thompson-Robinson recovers. X-ray results were negative on DTR’s right middle finger, but he is undergoing an MRI to determine the severity of the injury, per The Cleveland Plain-Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot.
Whether Winston or Thompson-Robinson starts this week and going forward the rest of the season, someone is going to have to catch the passes that would have normally gone Cooper’s way. With Jerry Jeudy ($4,800) a huge disappointment since arriving in “The Land,” it could be a great opportunity for Cedric Tillman ($3,300) to step into a starring role.
The Background
Tillman was a third-round pick by the Brons out of Tennessee before last season. He has 21 catches on 44 targets last year for 224 yards. He had two games with over 50 receiving yards but never caught more than four passes, had more than 60 yards or scored a touchdown. This season, he only had three catches in his first six games for a grand total of five yards.
His season did a 180 in a hurry on Sunday against the Bengals, though, as he finsihed second on the team with 12 targets and posted new career-highs with eight catches for 81 yards. He also snagged a contested two-point conversion which brought the Browns to within seven with under two minutes remaining. The fact that he was trusted with that target over Jeudy speaks volumes about the status of both players.
Tillman also led the team in air yards with a 39% share and while playing a whopping 82% of snaps.
The Bottom Line
Even after Watson’s injury and the return of Nick Chubb ($6,100), the Browns’ offense should be pass-heavy enough under Kevin Stefanski to make Tillman a great pickup from most leagues waiver wires. He’s virtually unowned but could be the team’s top WR the rest of the way. I have him as a boom-or-bust WR4 this week but with the potential to be much higher moving forward.
In DFS contests like the NFL $2.75M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] in Week 8, Tillman is ridiculously cheap at barely over the minimum at only $3,300. He could be chalky after such a monster performances last week, sure. But the fact that there are QB questions and 13 games on the slate should keep him from being too over-owned. If you go cheap at WR so as to build a lineup around other stars, Tillman is a great option.
The Ravens have allowed the second-most fantasy points per game to opposing WR this season, so Tillman has a great matchup to shine in for Week 8. He and the Browns begin the week as 10-point home underdogs on DraftKings Sportsbook.
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