Right Time For Healthy Barth Return
March 23rd, 2014
With the NFL contemplating driving up the values of kickers to ridiculous levels, Joe is breathing easy knowing that Bucs kicker Connor Barth is ready.
Yes, the trouble The Rian Lindell Experience is over.
Barth flushed a fat pile of money and his 2013 season when he tore his Achilles during a charity basketball game last summer.
One could say it altered Bucs history, considering a stronger Bucs kicking game likely would have put another two wins on the board early last season. And that ultimately could have led to another season for Greg Schiano.
Barth is signed for 2014, and Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com teased last week that he’s got a feature coming up on Barth very soon.
If that’s not a big clue Barth is healthy and ready, former Bucs rockstar general manager Mark Dominik already spilled the beans that Barth was belting 50-yard field goals in December.
In what feels like a move born from NFL executives throwing back Southern Comfort on a yacht off Myrtle Beach, the NFL is considering (see top link above) moving extra points back to the 25 yard line. The owners and their competition committee are gathering in Orlando this week.
Joe sincerely hopes the NFL isn’t altered by such a stupid, needless concept. But if so, at least are armed (legged?) with a quality kicker. Barth, 27, was easily among the NFL’s 10 best kickers before his injury.
March 23rd, 2014 at 3:44 pm
I just saw on profootballtalk that the bucs and ravens are talking about a possible deal for Jeremy Zuttah
March 23rd, 2014 at 3:47 pm
I am a huge Connor Barth fan….He is from my hometown of Wilmington, NC. I met him at a charity function in November (non basketball)….a great guy and really good kicker. His little brother, Casey kicks well too…but hasn’t found a home in the NFL.
Connor told me in November that he was back 100%.
March 23rd, 2014 at 3:52 pm
Report Bucs traded Zuttah for 2015 mid round pick.
We are saving some money for someone….
March 23rd, 2014 at 3:58 pm
Zuttahs contract was 4.5 million this year..cut our high priced punter and jackson becomes a strong possibility.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:02 pm
That’s good news about Barth. We are going to need a strong kicking game while we get this offense in order. I kinda like the idea of moving the extra points to the 25 yard line. I mean it’s not like in college where kickers struggle to extra points, in the nfl kickers rarely miss them to the point that u might as well autimtically make TDs 7 points. Moving the extra points back would make things more interestins, and that’s a good thing.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:08 pm
Good news Deacon Smith prides himself on defense , and special teams .
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:09 pm
Zuttah is definitely now a Raven, pending a physical…
Barth is incredibly accurate and consistent. Last year was a fiasco. Good to hear he’s back to 100%.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:09 pm
Traded Zuttah. Why? Do these guys hate guards? Say hello to Sua’Filo in the second round everybody
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:17 pm
Not sure I like trading Zuttah, but I guess we’ll see what the return is. It’s a 2015 pick, no round announced.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:18 pm
I mean seriously, how many times have u seen an nfl kicker miss an extra point? That’s the time u use to refill your soda or use the bathroom lol. Heck, I say move it back to the 30 yard line. It makes that part of the game more interesting, AND as a bonus you might see some more 2 point conversions, which are always fun to watch.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:20 pm
Matt, you mentioned the high-priced punter. One of the reasons he got the big deal he did was because of his booming kickoffs. If the No Fun League approves the proposal to move kickoffs to the 40, Barth could take over kickoffs and then the team wouldn’t need such a high-priced punter.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:30 pm
Matt Says
“Zuttahs contract was 4.5 million this year..cut our high priced punter and jackson becomes a strong possibility.”
Our punter is high-priced for a reason. He is one of the best.
And Jackson being cut would create over $7 mill of dead money.
You really want to set the offense back even further by cutting the best WR we have???
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:30 pm
Must be some news coming today or tomorrow on who we have signed to replace Zuttah. At least that is what I believe is the new regime’s MO.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:31 pm
If we knew they were gonna dump the entire o-line… they should have just kept Revis for one more year.
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:31 pm
Jeremy zutta has been traded to the ravens
March 23rd, 2014 at 4:34 pm
Bonzai,
I think they were referring to DeSean jackson.
March 23rd, 2014 at 5:43 pm
I’m fine with making the extra point automatic, unless you go for 2. De facto that’s pretty much what it is now.
But too much score variability for little excitement if you move it back to 25 yard line. The field goal itself is even a bit archaic if you ask me.
Right now if you are down by 21 (as Bucs fans commonly were) you know you are 3 scores away. Now 21 points behind will probably mean you are 4 scores away. Yuck.