The Cleveland Browns announced on Monday that they have acquired kicker Dustin Hopkins in a trade with the Los Angeles Chargers. Hopkins’ arrival also marked the end of underperforming kicker Cade York’s time with the franchise.
The Browns are sending a 2025 seventh-round pick to the Chargers as part of the Hopkins trade.
The Browns selected York out of Louisiana State University in the fourth round of 2022 in a move that raised more than a few eyebrows. The gamble seemed to have panned out as York had a dream start to his NFL career, going 4-of-4 on field goals and 2-of-2 on extra points in a 26–24 Week 1 win over the Carolina Panthers. This included converting a 58-yarder to seal the game.
However, York struggled for the rest of the 2022 campaign, making only 24 out of his 32 field goal attempts. The 22-year-old wasn’t any better this preseason, missing multiple game-winning field goals and failing to convert several extra points. This was a signal to the Browns that they needed to get a more reliable kicker.
In Hopkins, Cleveland is getting a kicker who has been in the middle of the pack for the better part of his career. He played four games with the Chargers in 2022, converting nine out of 10 field goal attempts and making good on all 12 extra points. He has an 84.8% conversion rate on FGs and a 94.4% conversion rate on PATs since entering the league in 2015.
