Charles Tillman was once a dominant cornerback, grading out 20^th, 6^th, and 3^rd in 2010, 2011, and 2012 respectively. However, he struggled last year, grading out as Pro Football Focus’ 89^th ranked cornerback out of 110 eligible on 438 snaps. The likely reasons for that are threefold. One is his age as he goes into his age 33 season. Another was the loss of former head coach Lovie Smith and defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. Going from those two running your defense to Mel Tucker is a serious downgrade that likely contributed to Tillman’s down year. The third was injury as he dealt with a variety of nagging injuries, including a torn triceps that ended his season 8 games in.

He could be better when healthy next season, but there’s a good chance he’s just never the same player again and close to being done. His age is now an even bigger concern and Lovie Smith and Rod Marinelli aren’t coming back. This one year deal, worth 3.5 million, isn’t much of a gamble and it could pay off for a team that needs help at both cornerback and safety. Tillman can play either position and potentially provide at least a short term solution at one of those positions. However, it’s not a great deal either and it’s a slight overpay in my opinion.

Grade: B+

[switch_ad_hub]

[switch_ad_hub]

[switch_ad_hub]