Savvy Cleveland Browns fans know that Cody Parkey was not the starting kicker in Game 1 of the 2020 season.
The kicking duties fell to second-year kicker Austin Seibert who had a disappointing game against the Baltimore Ravens.
#Browns have waived Austin Seibert after missed extra point and FG, source tells clevelanddotcom
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) September 14, 2020
Conveniently, the Browns signed Cody Parkey to the practice squad a few days prior citing COVID-19 concerns.
In the blink of an eye, Cody Parkey once again became the Browns starting kicker.
He signed a 1-year contract with the Browns for $910,000, a considerably lower salary than he had with the Bears ($3.5 million).
Cody Parkey has been on a lot of teams including the Colts, Eagles, Browns (two times), Dolphins, Bears, and Titans.
Ironically, Austin Seibert didn’t venture far away, staying in Ohio to become the Bengals backup kicker.
Career Stats
In 7 seasons, Parkey has made 115 out of 136 field goals.
He has only missed 8 extra points (179 out of 188).
In 2020 with the Browns, Parkey is 13 of 15 on field-goal conversions.
7 of those field goals were from 40+ yards.
And he made 25 of 26 extra points.
“Double Doink”
Cody Parkey is perhaps best known for the “double doink” kick in the 2018 NFC Wild Card game that was blocked and somehow inexplicably hit the left upright and then bounced off the cross bar.
The kick was no good and resulted in his former team, the Eagles, advancing in the playoffs and ultimately winning the Super Bowl.
As if the failed kick was not bad enough, Parkey made an ill-advised appearance on the Today show which was met with a lot of criticism.
Many questioned why he didn’t deal with the failure quietly especially since the entire Chicago Bears organization shared in the disappointment.
He was released by the Bears two months later.
People are human. People miss. It happened. But this, is one I would have turned down. Imagine how the 52 other men in that locker room feel seeing this, and that staff. This is a head shaker to me. https://t.co/wnn184lpfR
— StaceyDales (@StaceyDales) January 11, 2019
Parkey on Reserve/COVID-19 list
Cody Parkey recently landed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, and it was not certain he would be eligible for the Eagles game.
He did not contract the virus but was a high-risk close contact to someone who was positive.
Parkey repeatedly tested negative and was activated before the game.
Browns Playoff Hopes
Obviously, the Browns need to keep winning to stay ahead of the Ravens in the AFC North and put themselves in a good position for a wildcard spot assuming the Steelers continue to run away with the division.
There could be tight games ahead where Parkey is kicking to keep the Browns season alive.
Hopefully, the “double doink” is buried deeply in the past, and Parkey gets another chance to redeem himself and lift his team to victory.
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