PHILADELPHIA — Kicker Cade York seemed to be on a roll Thursday night after making the first three of his field goals against the Philadelphia Eagles.
But that streak soon came to an end when, with a game-winner in front of him, not only did he miss it from 47 yards out—but he couldn't get it through the uprights after a penalty gave him a second chance from 41 yards out.
“Definitely disappointing for that to happen,” York said. “I don’t think preseason so far has been a good indication of how I’ve been kicking so far; in training camp, I think I only missed one kick out of like 40-45."
York, so far, has missed four field goals this preseason—missing one in each of the first two games before seeming to have found a groove at the start of Thursday's game.
While many outside of the organization may have started to question his kicking abilities, York said confidence is never going to be an issue for him.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski said that confidence is shared by the team as well.
“The preseason is a time to work on your craft and get better. He is disappointed to not make that kick at the end, he wants to be there for the team, and that's why he will continue to work really hard," Stefanski said. “With any young player, certainly you’ve seen it with kickers, you do go through a tough period here or there. I have a ton of confidence in Cade because I’ve seen him do it in practice; I’ve seen him do it in games. So he’ll continue to work."
As York works through his struggles, the Browns are sticking by him—reiterating they have no interest in bringing in another kicker for competition through the end of training camp.
“Cade’s our kicker. We support him, simple as that,” Stefanski said.
On a related note, York drew plenty of criticism after the game from fans, many of whom pointed out a shared Instagram story from his account that appeared on his account at halftime. The post, which originally came from the Browns account, praised York for the first three made field goals.
Stefanski addressed that, noting that York was not the person who shared that to his account but said they will still discuss that with him.
“That was not Cade who posted that. I’ll talk to him about that. All of our players, coaches, know the rules. None of us are allowed to be on our phones once kickoff hits," Stefanski said.
York's next chance to bounce back before the regular season hits is in the last preseason game—set for Saturday, Aug. 26, against the defending Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs. You can watch the game right here on News 5.
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