2023 NFL draft predictions: New Orleans Saints picked as best team to select Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver prospect Cedric Tillman
Are the New Orleans Saints still prioritizing wide receiver after adding former Las Vegas Raiders standout Bryan Edwards to a receiving corps that includes Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, Rashid Shaheed, and Tre’Quan Smith? It’s probably not as high a team need in the 2023 NFL draft as it was before Edwards signed on (joining Kirk Merritt, Keith Kirkwood, and Kawaan Baker among the players hoping to make their case in training camp), but the Saints should still consider it.
And here’s a suggestion for the best 2023 NFL draft prospect fit for them, courtesy of Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton. He likes the match of New Orleans and former Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Cedric Tillman in the third round at No. 71 overall. Here’s what was written about what might be a perfect match:
Cedric Tillman has flown under the radar because of an injury-riddled 2022 term. Playing in just six games of his senior season, Tillman caught 37 passes for 417 yards and three touchdowns.
Still, Tillman will probably land on the Day 2 radar for most teams because of his impressive 2021 campaign. In that year, he hauled in 64 passes for 1,081 yards and 12 touchdowns as the program’s leading receiver over Velus Jones Jr., who went No. 71 overall to the Chicago Bears in the 2022 draft.
Tillman wins with physicality before the catch, and he’s tough to bring down with the ball in his hands. At 6’3″, 213 pounds, with his ability to attack balls at a high point, Tillman should be able to move the chains on the third downs and become a red-zone threat as a rookie.
The New Orleans Saints should consider Tillman with the 71st overall pick. Derek Carr plays well with big-bodied pass-catchers, which is probably why the team worked out a restructured contract with oft-injured wideout Michael Thomas (6’3″, 212 lbs), re-signed tight end Juwan Johnson (6’4″, 231 lbs) and added 6’3″, 215-pound wide receiver Bryan Edwards (Carr’s former Las Vegas Raiders teammate) in free agency.
Tillman could be a viable replacement for Thomas if the veteran wideout continues to miss significant time because of injuries.
Furthermore, Saints wide receivers coach Kodi Burns held the same position at Tennessee during Tillman’s 2021 breakout year.
We’re fans of Tillman here at Saints Wire — he was our pick at No. 40 overall in our last collaborative staff mock draft, so there would be some celebrating if the Saints can get him an entire round later. He knows how to use his size to bully smaller defenders and he separates easily. He’s a good athlete for his size, too, and was the alpha dog in the Vols receiving corps when healthy in each of the last two years. He out-produced Jones a year ago and started out hotter than Jalin Hyatt this past season until an unfortunate injury slowed him down.
And as Moton observed, the Saints have a lot of connections to Rocky Top, up to and including Tillman’s old position coach. New Orleans has kept that pipeline open over the years, importing talents like Alvin Kamara, Shy Tuttle, Marquez Callaway, Alontae Taylor, and multiple other contributors. They know the program and the athletes it produces well, and Tillman could absolutely be on their radar in a few weeks.
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