Browns trade kicker Cade York to Commanders for conditional seventh-round pick

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn made clear this week that kicker Riley Patterson’s job was in jeopardy after he missed two field goals in last week’s preseason game, and now the Commanders have acted.

The Browns are trading kicker Cade York to the Commanders for a conditional seventh-round draft pick, according to Albert Breer of SI.com.

The Browns have decided that Dustin Hopkins has won the kicking competition with York, and they’re getting something for him now rather than putting him on waivers next week during final roster cuts and getting nothing in return. Typically conditional trades like this mean the Browns get the pick if York becomes the Commanders’ kicker for the regular season.

York originally went to the Browns as a fourth-round draft pick in 2022 but was cut in favor of Hopkins before the start of the 2023 season. York then briefly spent time with the Titans and Giants in 2023 before signing for a second stint with the Browns this offseason. Now he’ll be given a good chance to beat out Patterson for the Commanders kicking job.

The Commanders thought they had solved their kicking problem when they signed Brandon McManus this offseason, handing him a $1.5 million signing bonus to play in Washington. But when McManus was accused of sexual assault in a civil lawsuit, the Commanders cut him. That left them scrambling to find a replacement, and Patterson hasn’t proven to be up to the task. They’ll hope York can do the job.