The Hidden Pattern Behind Cade York’s Struggles
Photo Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Just like with any other play in football, kicking a field goal is a team effort.
The snap has to be precise and accurate. The holder has to spin the laces away from the kicker and place the ball at the right angle for it to fly at the correct trajectory depending on the distance. Then the kicker has to put enough power behind the ball and aim it correctly.
Every step of the process has to be perfect in order for the field goal to be successful, even if kickers throughout the league often make it look easy.
Throughout his college career at Louisiana State University, Cleveland Browns kicker Cade York was known for just that. During his junior season, York was the third-most accurate kicker in the country with 20 or more field goal attempts, recording an 83.3% field goal percentage during his senior year. He also never missed a PAT between those two seasons. He was perfect.
So how does one of the most accurate kickers in the college game all of a sudden lose his mojo?
It could be attributed to a few different things. Maybe York has a case of the yips where he’s simply overthinking when he’s on the field. It’s happened to some of the best kickers in the league. Sometimes kickers just find themselves in a slump.
The entire process of the field goal should be taken into account though when it goes awry and there are currently a lot of eyes falling on punter and holder Corey Bojorquez.
The 26-year-old from Bellflower, CA is entering his sixth season in the NFL, and while he’s been a solid punter, averaging a career punt distance of 46.1 after leading the league with an average of 50.8 yards in 2020, his placekickers haven’t fared as well.
Bojorquez has held for Stephen Hauschka, Tyler Bass, Mason Crosby, and now York, and all of them, at one point or another, hit a slump or suffered career-low seasons.
During his two years with Bojorquez in Buffalo, Hauschka had two career-low seasons — outside of his second year in the league — making 78.6% of his field goal attempts. During his first season with the Bills, the longtime Seahawk drilled 87.9% of his field goal attempts.
Rookie kicker Tyler Bass then came along in 2020, during Bojorquez’s final season in Buffalo, and converted 82.4% of his field goals. During the last two seasons, Bass has never dipped below 87%.
Finally, in 2021, during Bojorquez’s lone season in Green Bay, veteran kicker Mason Crosby made 73.5% of his field goals. It wasn’t the worst season of his 16-year NFL career, but it was his worst since hitting 63.6% of his attempts in 2012.
York has definitely struggled, making just three of his six field goal attempts this preseason, including two game-winning attempts against the Philadelphia Eagles after the first was called back due to a penalty. But there is obviously a trend related to Bojorquez’s holding abilities, as three other kickers have experienced it.
Bojorquez’s holding problem could be a few different things. He could be tilting the ball wrong or not spinning the laces away fast enough. Whatever it is, it seems to be affecting York’s ability to convert field goal attempts.
The easy solution here would be to have someone else hold for York but teams often like to use punters and kickers in tandem in order to optimize practice time. Either way, the problem needs to be solved as York will be crucial to the Browns’ success this season.
Having a kicker with York’s ability will allow Cleveland to put points on the scoreboard even if drives stall out in their opponents’ territory.
The Browns also don’t seem to be giving up on York either.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski has been adamant that the organization will continue to support York through his struggles and that the former fourth-round pick is their kicker moving forward.
“I have a ton of confidence in Cade because I’ve seen him do it in practice,” Stefanski said in a press conference the day after their 18-18 tie with Philadelphia. “I’ve seen him do it in games. So he’ll continue to work, but I feel it’s really no different than any other player where they‘ve got to work on their craft. Now is the time to do that.
“Obviously, Cade wants to make every kick. We want him to make every kick. It’s an occupational hazard that you’re going to miss one. It’s how you deal with it and how you bounce back from it.”
Ultimately, the Browns are being patient. They didn’t bring another kicker into camp after the former LSU Tiger was inconsistent at times during his rookie season where he made 24 of 32 field goal attempts. They also haven’t publicly said they would bring in any competition to possibly push York a little more.
Patience is a virtue and missing kicks as an NFL kicker is often an occupational hazard, it’s going to happen at some point and it has to some of the best kickers in the history of the game.
Whether it’s Bojorquez’s holding abilities or York is simply in a slump, the verdict is still out and the Browns are looking to find a solution come their Week 1 matchup against Cincinnati.
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