With less than a year until I turn 30, the New York Giants have decided to truly make me feel my age.
The Giants have five receivers who are at least 29 years old, none of whom are under contract beyond this year. Regardless of how the coming months turn out, we can collectively agree that Joe Schoen must add some youth to the receiver room.
Schoen might not need to wait until next spring’s draft, though. Not if he can get his hands on Browns receiver Cedric Tillman.
Should the New York Giants trade for Cleveland Browns receiver Cedric Tillman?
The 26-year-old Tillman is exactly the kind of player you’ll see emerge in preseason trade talks. He’s entering the final year of his rookie deal and, barring a massive 2026 campaign, appears unlikely to earn a second contract in Cleveland.
A 2023 third-round pick from Tennessee, Tillman has 71 catches for 833 yards and five touchdowns over 38 games. Amusingly, he went one pick after the Giants took college teammate and fellow receiver Jalin Hyatt.
And ironically, trading those two for one another isn’t an awful idea. Both teams have new coaches and new offensive play-callers, so Tillman and Hyatt have essentially already gotten one fresh start.
But the fact that we heard little about Hyatt both before and after the Giants signed three veteran receivers — Odell Beckham Jr. being the most notable — in June says plenty about Hyatt’s current place in the Giants’ plans.
Personally, I’m definitely interested in a potential Tillman trade. He’s made 19 career starts, 10 coming last year, and he should come relatively cheap.
NFL Media’s Lance Zierlein was mixed on Tillman ahead of the 2023 draft, predicting that he’d be a plus-starter because of an “enticing blend of size, skill and toughness.” However, Zierlein’s greatest concern has come to fruition through Tillman’s first three seasons.
“He has average speed and needs to play with better explosiveness out of his breaks, as NFL windows will become much tighter on the first two levels,” Zierlein wrote.
For the sake of conversation, let’s say the Giants traded Hyatt to the Browns and got Tillman back in a rare one-for-one move. Maybe there’s a swap of conditional draft picks, too.
What’s the worst-case scenario? The Giants could survive Tillman being a rental who doesn’t contribute beyond a few catches. Ideally, that’d mean the rest of the receivers — specifically Darius Slayton and Malik Nabers — stay healthy
But given the Browns’ luck, Tillman would thrive under John Harbaugh and all the ex-Ravens coaches in New York.
Actually, maybe that’s reason enough for the Giants to pursue a Tillman trade.
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