Who Should I Start? Cedric Tillman or Ladd McConkey

Saturday, June 28, 11:22 AM

The Athletic's Zac Jackson writes that the Cleveland Browns are banking on wide receiver Cedric Tillman building on his big stretch in the middle of last season since they didn't draft a receiver and only added Diontae Johnson in free agency. Jackson adds that Tillman should be in for a full-time role in 2025 and could complement WR1 Jerry Jeudy in an offense that could incorporate a lot of deep passes if veteran Joe Flacco wins the quarterback job. The advantage that Tillman has is his size (6-foot-3, 215 pounds), and he scored his first three NFL touchdowns in October and November of last year. Although he missed the last six games of 2024 with a concussion, he's still viewed as an ascending player and has two years left on his rookie deal. Even with more opportunity, Tillman will likely be viewed as a WR5/6 target in deeper fantasy formats for receiver depth.

Monday, June 23, 6:52 PM

The additions to the Los Angeles Chargers' offense this year should make second-year wide receiver Ladd McConkey even more dangerous, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. The different is that last year the offense was stunted because they lacked vertical threats. This year, the Chargers have options that can attack defenses vertically from various alignments, which will open up short and intermediate areas for McConkey. Rookie wideout Tre' Harris and rookie tight end Oronde Gadsden both have the ability to make plays down the field for the Bolts and take attention away from McConkey. McConkey was a fantasy stud in his first year in the NFL with 82 catches on 112 targets for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns in 16 regular-season games (14 starts). The Chargers will remain a run-first offense, but McConkey should still be in play as a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 in fantasy.