Geeks Vs. Jason Licht
May 11th, 2016
Spreadsheeters at odds with Bucs GM.
Cue the violins. A bunch of has-been (unemployed?) accountants playing football general manager are, again, enraged.
Full of chutzpah, the numberscrunchers, specifically the PFF tribe, will have you believe they are modern day versions of Amos Alonzo Stagg — that they know more about football than those who played it or worked in it their entire lives.
Of course, you don’t need proficiency with Excel spreadsheets to determine if a football coach is good or bad. We all saw the drek of a defense trotted out weekly by Coach My Scheme. Joe didn’t need any mathematical formula to determine it was rotten to the core.
But these geeks, they even have the nerve to go after anyone and everyone, no matter their resumé. Not even Bill Belicheat is safe from their wrath. Lately, the next man these fools have a problem with is Jason Licht.
These keyboard warriors torched the AC/DC-loving Bucs general manager for his choices in offensive linemen. They absolutely despise to their very core left tackle Donovan Smith. They had such a freakout on Twitter when the Bucs signed J.R. Sweezy, it was as if mom took away their mouse for surfing porn.
Now the likes of Mike Renner is aiming at Licht’s recent draft, specifically second-round pick Roberto Aguayo. Renner believes the kicker is the worst of Licht’s 2016 draft class.
Not much to say here. The Bucs drafted a kicker in the second round. A kicker who was just 50 percent from 40-plus yards a year ago. And they traded up to do it.
Of course, the Canton-bound Connor Barth was just a tick over 50 percent from the same distance, was over 30, and his last two years suggested a further slide. He was No. 32 in the NFL in kicks from 40-49 yards out. Never mind that, Aguayo still stinks, right? Let’s forget how he is damned near perfect inside the 40, which one would suspect all kickers would strive to be.
Time will only tell who is right on this one, a wannabe with a spreadsheet, or a guy who has worked his entire adult life learning from some of the greatest minds in NFL history, including Don Shula, Jimmy Johnson and Belicheat.
But what do those guys know, they probably stink at data entry.
May 11th, 2016 at 7:29 am
Remember extra points have moved back and I recall bucs kicker missing last year. So a guy who is money inside 40 is big.
May 11th, 2016 at 7:41 am
I don’t agree with a lot of what the Joe’s say or the way they say it, but they’re absolutely correct about the morons @ PFF. It’s like the fools don’t believe fans have eyes, and count on them to come up with opinions on players when half the stats they come up with do their best to make mediocre lineman out of Pro Bowlers, and Pro Bowlers into trash, that are lucky to have a roster spot in the NFL.
KEEP PREACHING IT JOE!
May 11th, 2016 at 7:52 am
Connor Barths taking an ohio vacation???
May 11th, 2016 at 8:11 am
@THETRUTH
Conner is 174 of 175 on extra points. You can’t blame Barth for getting cut by Lovie and not being with the team. The choice this season was Conner or using a 2nd round pick on Aguayo. I don’t think the Bucs were thinking about bring back Brinzda.
Conner turning 30 in April or any kicker for that matter shouldn’t have been much of a factor. Barth is one of the better (top 10 active FG%) kickers, he’ll be kicking in the NFL for another 5-10 years.
May 11th, 2016 at 8:26 am
Jason Licht loves AC/DC? How interesting again. I almost forgot. Thanks for the reminder again.
May 11th, 2016 at 8:34 am
Stan…yeah Barth won’t be unemployed for long.
May 11th, 2016 at 8:48 am
Yeah ’87 I’m warming up to the Aguayo pick but I’m tried of people acting like Conner was a lousy kicker. I few years back the guy went 9-9 on 50+ yard fgs for us with a game winning long of 57. As a Buccaneer he converted 83.8 percent of his field goal attempts (114-of-136) with the club. His 114 field goals, 135 PATs, and 447 points all rank third in franchise history.[1] Barth holds the franchise record for consecutive field goals made with 25.
I was a huge Aguayo fan his first 2 seasons at FSU but last season was kinda down for his standards. As a Buc fan I’ll definitively be rooting for the return of the 2013-14 Roberto.
May 11th, 2016 at 8:53 am
I like Barth don’t get me wrong but if this kid is what he is billed out to be we will be set for 10 yrs. like raiders , every pic is a reach not a sure thing. We gave up an extra 4 th pick for him. I’m ok with that , I hate when they say we gave up two pics when no one gave to and got one. Gotta trust the guys who job is to study these players.
I hope and sure Barth will land somewhere quickly
May 11th, 2016 at 8:58 am
Another defensive end or corner/back should have been the pick!!
May 11th, 2016 at 9:19 am
I can’t wait in four years to pay our awesome kick $5 million per season. Good times
May 11th, 2016 at 9:23 am
Because he was fifty percent last year, it automatically means he’ll be 50 percent or worse this year? lol
May 11th, 2016 at 9:40 am
Stan…that’s what I was saying a couple weeks back. Aquayo was automatic for the first 2 years. 2015 was a rough year for him. I’m really holding my breath (keyboard) on this kid because of his 2015.
Just saying last season was the first time I would honestly worry if he’d
make the kick when he trotted out on the field.
Let’s hope we get 2013-2014 Aguayo.
May 11th, 2016 at 11:20 am
How many teams whiffed at a third round pick, so what if Licht missed on this gamble. So what?….Its no big deal.
Yes the pick was in the second round, but it was Licht who got the free upgrade, again,.. so what?
Marpet was a reasoned gamble, so is this.
The kicker position on any team has to be solid with the new rules. And unless Licht finds an answer for that postilion soon he will be out here like Lovie.
With the Brendza reach last year, Licht is acting like his job depends on it. I think he is right.
May 11th, 2016 at 11:42 am
None of the anti-Aguayo crowd seems to be grasping the fact that the pick was not just about his FG and PAT %. He is an fantastic field goal kicker, but he is a weapon on kickoffs that can help the Bucs control field position at will. The fact that Koetter was throwing out statistics comparing points made after starting at the 25 compared to inside the 25 is telling. IMO, Aguayo was picked just as much for his ability to help the defense by pinning the offense deep on kickoffs as he was for his ability to score points.
May 11th, 2016 at 12:01 pm
Well Joe, a non-spreadsheet warrior, and someone who presumably also spent his adult life working in football and learning from smart people called Licht’s selection of Aguayo “the dumbest pick in the history of the draft.” So I guess maybe the lukewarm feeling is not exclusive to has-been accountants playing football general manager?
Aguayo was at his absolute best as a kicker when he was playing for an all-time dominant college football team in 2013 that blew out each team they played by 14 or more points until the championship game. As the team got worse over the years so did his accuracy, which dipped below Barth’s accuracy last year. Take it for what you will. And those mortar kicks which Koetter didn’t commit to using during the season sure are a worthwhile investment in two premium draft picks. That’s why no other GM is doing it.
May 11th, 2016 at 12:43 pm
More noise from the numbers crowd. Doesn’t matter. The game is played on the field. Licht has proven he knows what he’s doing in the draft, and he has my unconditional support in these matters until things go south. I think the Aguayo pick will prove to be uncontroversial, as I trust the assessment they’ve made of him and expect him to be extremely reliable and clutch.
May 11th, 2016 at 1:28 pm
How quick we forget , we lost 2-3 games last year because of our kicker , we needed a kicker for sure , was it worth two picks prob not , but I rather win 2-3 games than have a 50-50 chance on a 3rd round draft choice
May 11th, 2016 at 3:51 pm
Not just geeks. Every analyst you read, or say 90%. I’d say prob 90% of non buc fans hate the pick too.
May 11th, 2016 at 6:00 pm
Robert Aguayo is not damned near perfect from inside the 40, he IS perfect from inside the 40. 46 of 46 to be exact. 198 for 198 extra points in a row. The 50% is based on last year only when he went 5 for 10 from 40+. Aguayo struggled from a distance when on the hashes, it’s an awkward angle in college. He’s very accurate when he gets a dead on look, and he has the leg to hit 60+ yards. Two of his misses in college were actually makes. Aguayo kicks ridiculously high, above the uprights. The replay post-game showed both FG were good. He also had one blocked in the Georgia Tech game. With his “mortar” kick-offs, which highlight his accuracy and hang time to pin the returner inside the 20 yard line, we can begin to have a significant impact on the opponents field position. I am sure the special teams will begin to practice covering kick-offs. Another key is to have your fastest players on special teams. Kenny Bell, Josh Robinson and Ryan Smith come to mind. Aguayo is going to win games for us kicking FG and by field position. Well worth what we gave up to get him.
May 11th, 2016 at 6:00 pm
Dae can use the Joe Madden Roberto clip again!
May 11th, 2016 at 8:11 pm
@Sunny, the games that were lost was because Licht tried to get cute and play Brindza how couldn’t kick the ball in the ocean off of a 10 foot pier.
When Barth returned he kicked the way he always had and converted a higher % of kicks than Mr.Best-college-kicker-ever did.
Aguayo hasn’t missed a FG in under 40 yards in the past 2 years? Hey, look at that! Neither did Connor Barth. Go figure. What and incredible improvement in kicking we must have by dumping a guy who converted 83% of his kicks last year for someone who converted 80% of his kicks last year.
But supposedly Aguayo’s mortar kicks are going to really make the difference. Barth was not a good kickoff specialist. And in the end who wouldn’t want to deal away a 3rd and 4th round pick in a very deep draft for a better kickoff guy?