The Bengals replaced injured Super Bowl kicker Evan McPherson with the national championship kicker for Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase at LSU when they signed Cade York to the practice squad after a Paycor Stadium workout.
No doubt York gets elevated to the roster for Monday night's game in Dallas (8:15-Cincinnati's Channel 9 and ESPN) as McPherson goes to injured reserve for the first time in his four-year career with a right groin injury.
McPherson felt a twinge while kicking an extra point barely ten minutes into Sunday's game against the Steelers, but he still had eight good kicks in him until the gun went off.
York, a fourth-round pick of the Browns in 2022, didn't kick last season and was released by the Commanders after missing wide right from 47 and 56 yards in the opener on his only field-goal tries.
McPherson calls it his most significant injury since he tore a quad in high school, but he expects to recover fully and is encouraged no surgery is needed.
"Adrenaline is an amazing drug," McPherson said Wednesday. "If you get injured like that in a game, you don't realize how bad it could be."
McPherson says he felt something when he kicked his second extra point. But he was able to make three more PATs and a 38-yard field goal, as well as take the ensuing kickoffs that included one onside attempt.
"I've strained my groin before, but I knew it was something semi-serious when I couldn't put much pressure on it during the tests," McPherson said of how it felt after the game. "The good news is it's let the body heal by itself."
McPherson has missed one game in the NFL when he joined most of the starters in sitting out the 2021 regular-season in Cleveland. After tweaking his groin earlier, it was pretty much precautionary.
"I was fine after that," said McPherson, who went on to a massive postseason he made every field-goal try and his last-play kicks put them into the AFC title game and the Super Bowl. "The next year I had another groin strain, but it wasn't bad enough to miss games and it got well going right to rehab."
With five games left and staring at a four-game stint on IR, what he characterized as his "up and down season," looks to be over. But he hopes not.
"I feel like it's going to end on a high note and kind of carry it over into next season," McPherson said. "Let's see how long this takes to heal."
It all started so gloriously with the birth of his daughter back in March, a three-year contract extension in August, and a fast start to the season where he made his first three 50-yarders. He missed his next four, capped off with the 51- and 48-yard misses in the fourth quarter Nov. 17 in Los Angeles.
But he remains perpetually upbeat after making all his kicks Sunday.
"I think we were well on our way to being more consistent," McPherson said. "I think we had a good feeling where we were. As specialists, we went into last Sunday's game with a couple of keywords. Just to have fun. Go out and have fun playing football with your friends."
A man of faith, he also sees a silver lining and already anticipates getting built up physically for next year.
"God works in mysterious ways," McPherson said. "It's been an interesting (year) for sure, but I think it's going to be a great one to learn from and look back on.
"It's going to give me a chance to work on my body more and get it stronger."
