The Cleveland Browns must replace elite kicker Dustin Hopkins for the stretch run of the regular season, and it appears they made their decision on Christmas Day.

Cleveland inked kicker Riley Patterson to the practice squad on Monday, December 25, one day after Hopkins suffered a hamstring injury against the Houston Texans.

“The Cleveland Browns have signed K Riley Patterson to the practice squad,” per the team’s official website.

Patterson got his start with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2021 coming out of Memphis. He never played for the purple and gold during that season, but did catch on with the Detroit Lions later in the year.

The kicker was nearly perfect for the Lions in seven games during his rookie campaign, connecting on 13-of-14 field goals and making all 16 of his extra point tries. Patterson played all 17 games for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2022 before rejoining the Lions this season.

He made good on 15-of-17 field goals and 35-of-37 extra point tries through 13 games in Detroit before the franchise abruptly dumped him two weeks ago in favor of six-year veteran Michael Badgley.

Patterson missed both of his extra points on the year during his final three games with Detroit, one in a 29-22 loss to the Green Bay Packers on November 23 and the other in a 28-13 loss against the Chicago Bears on December 10.

Over the course of his three-year career, which spans 37 games played, Patterson is 58-of-66 on field goal tries and 87-of-90 on extra point attempts, per Pro Football Reference.

Hopkins’ hamstring strain against the Texans on Sunday represents the most recent stroke of awful injury luck for the Browns in 2023.

Cleveland parted with a 2025 seventh-round draft pick to acquire Hopkins from the Los Angeles Chargers ahead of the season, likely unaware that they had acquired arguably the best kicker in the league this year.

Hopkins has made four game-winners in 2023 and is a perfect 8-of-8 on field goal attempts of 50-plus yards, which is tied for the most kicks made from that range in the NFL this season. The kicker also entered Week 15 with the most field goal makes of any distance in the league, connecting on 33-of-36 attempts through 14 games. He is 24-of-26 on extra point tries this season.

“[Hopkins has] been one of GM Andrew Berry’s best acquisitions, and the Browns wouldn’t be 9-5 without him,” Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com wrote on Sunday. “[Hopkins] is two field goals away from surpassing Jim Brown (126 in 1965) for most points scored in a season. The Browns had to cut bait with [kicker] Cade York, but probably never envisioned Hopkins being this great. He’s helped save the season.”

It is unclear how long Hopkins will be out, though hamstring injuries can linger, so multiple games is a possibility.