CLEVELAND — When news broke on Tuesday that the Cincinnati Bengals would place a waiver claim on kicker Austin Seibert, most Cleveland Browns fans' minds went to the same dark place.
What if Seibert comes back to beat the Browns with a game-winning kick later this week, when Cleveland faces Cincinnati on Thursday Night Football? How could the Browns even put themselves in such a position?
Presented with this very scenario during a teleconference with reporters, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski made it clear he doesn't share the same concerns.
"No, it's not worrisome," Stefanski said.
As for why Cleveland didn't wait to release Seibert, thus making it tougher the Bengals -- who were in need of a kicker following a calf injury suffered by Randy Bullock -- to claim him, Stefanski said, "We're comfortable with the roster decision."
Cleveland's decision to release Seibert came after the second-year kicker missed his only field goal (40 yards) and extra point attempts in the Browns' season-opening 38-6 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Speaking after the game, Stefanski expressed the need for Seibert to perform better than he did against Baltimore.
"I expect him to make those kicks," Stefanski said. "I hold him to the same standard that we hold every other player on this team. He has to make those kicks."
In Seibert's place, Cleveland promoted veteran has Cody Parkey from its practice squad. Over the course of a six-year NFL career, Parkey has appeared in 68 regular-season games, connecting on 102 of his 121 field goal attempts, with a career-long of 54 yards. In 2016, Parkey served as Cleveland's starting kicker for 14 games and has since spent time as a member of the Miami Dolphins, Chicago Bears and Tennessee Titans.