The Cleveland Browns have moved on from kicker Dustin Hopkins.
However, as much as the move made sense from a football standpoint, his replacement will miss him.
When asked about Hopkins and his departure, Andre Szmyt had nothing but good things to say about his former competitor.
“He meant a lot to me. He’s one of the best guys I’ve ever met. We briefly caught each other in the locker room, and we said some nice words to each other. I’m always going to be rooting for him, and I know he’ll be doing the same for me,” Szmyt said.
Asked #Browns K Andre Szmyt what Dustin Hopkins meant to him:
"He's one of the best guys I've ever met…we briefly caught each other in the locker room and we said some nice words to each other…I'm always going to be rooting for him and I know he'll be doing the same for me." pic.twitter.com/bMaKtiK8BI
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) August 26, 2025
Hopkins was one of the weakest links on the team last season, and his struggles followed him to training camp and the preseason.
He was one of the most accurate kickers in the game, making 91.7 percent of his field goal attempts in 2023, his first season with the Browns.
Then, after securing a lucrative contract extension, Hopkins made just 18 of 27 field goals and missed three extra-point attempts last season.
Szmyt is the only kicker on the Browns’ 53-man roster.
He was undrafted in 2023 and signed with the Chicago Bears.
Then, he tried his luck in the UFL with the St. Louis Battlehawks before catching the Browns’ eye last December.
They signed him to the practice squad and offered him a future contract, and although he was later waived, they re-signed him this offseason.
This team can’t afford to waste scoring opportunities, as they might be hard to come by.
With that in mind, they might not have a long leash with Szmyt, as there will be little margin for error.
NEXT: Browns Bolster Roster With 2 New Additions
