The Cleveland Browns used a fourth-round pick on LSU kicker Cade York last year with the hope he could stabilize the position for them. So far, the team’s preseason has demonstrated that isn’t the case.
After a so-so rookie year, making 24 of 32 field goals and missing two extra points, York ended Thursday’s game with about as loud a thud as you can get from a kicker. The 22-year-old lined up with a chance to break a tie from 47 yards with two minutes remaining against the Philadelphia Eagles. He missed the kick wide right, but was granted a reprieve when Eagles defensive tackle Olive Sagapolu was called for illegal formation.
York took that second chance and … missed wide left. The game eventually ended as an 18-18 tie (no overtime in preseason).
York did make three field goals earlier in the game, twice from 43 yards and once from 37 yards. He was so happy about one of them he posted video of it to his Instagram story at halftime, which has since been deleted.
That pair of missed game-winners continues a concerning preseason for York, who went 0-for-2 on field goals with misses from 46 and 49 yards in the Browns’ other two preseason games.
After Thursday’s game, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski reportedly said the team had no interest in bringing in competition for York, who remains the only kicker on its roster. That’s not what some Browns fans are going to want to hear, and you can only wonder how many misses York can post before it’s no longer true.
The Browns currently sit at 1-1-1 in preseason, with one more game remaining against the Kansas City Chiefs before their regular season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 10.
