Browns Sign Billy Cundiff as Their Kicker

Since 1999, three men have kicked for the Cleveland Browns: Phil Dawson, the starter from 1999-2012, and brief injury fill-ins Brett Conway and Billy Cundiff for a couple of games during that stretch. Despite the fact that Dawson is no longer with the Browns, for now, that statistic will remain the same. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Browns have reached an agreement with Cundiff:

Browns reached agreement with K Billy Cundiff.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 3, 2013

During the 2009 season, Cundiff filled in for five games for Dawson and was 6-of-6 with the Browns. His longest field goal out of those six kicks was from 31 yards out, though, which is indicative of how poor the Browns' goal line offense was at the time.

After leaving Cleveland, Cundiff had a glorious year with the Baltimore Ravens in 2010. He had a career year, connecting on 26-of-29 field goals, and even made the Pro Bowl. He was also known for getting the ball out of the end zone on kickoffs, even though he rarely attempted long-distance field goals. Cundiff's production dropped off in 2011, when he only hit 28-of-37 field goals for Baltimore. His most costly miss came in the playoffs, when he missed a chip shot that prevented Baltimore from tying a game that could have sent them to the Super Bowl.

In 2012, Cundiff was a fill-in starter for the Redskins, connecting on 7-of-12 field goals. Cundiff has made 75.5% of his field goals in his career, compared to Shayne Graham's average of 85.4%. Also, Cundiff has only made 5-of-21 field goal attempts from beyond 50 yards in his career. Dawson was 7-of-7 on 50+ yard attempts in 2012 alone!

Graham is the better kicker in my book, so unless he is hurt, it's hard to understand why Cundiff was ultimately chosen over Graham. If Cundiff struggles, the kicker position could very well be a fluid one for all of 2013.

Cundiff was one of two kickers who tried out for the Browns earlier in the day on Tuesday.