Upon Review, Aguayo’s Numbers Better
May 3rd, 2016
Stats better than Bucs kickers of the past.
Joe notices the outrage is still brisk and raw over the Bucs trading up into the second round to grab kicker Roberto Aguayo, who was as close to a perfect college kicker as there has been.
But… but… but… the haters scream, look at his percentage over 40 yards!
True, Aguayo was 18-24 in three years at Florida State from 40-49 yards (but a strong 14 of 17 his first two seasons). That’s 75 percent for his three years at Florida State.
Well, be careful pointing toward that stat, haters.
So Joe did some digging. So let’s look at the guy he replaced, Connor Barth. Last year Barth was plain and simple not good from 40-49 yards out. Barth connected on half of his six attempts from the same distance last year, good enough to be ranked No. 32 for NFL kickers. That, folks, is not very good.
Barth’s long-range kicking has slipped the past two seasons. He is 30. Slipping with long range kicks and turning 30 is not a good trend.
So let’s take a peek at the best kicker in Bucs history, Martin Gramatica, a third round pick. He made 28 of 47 kicks from the 40-49 yard range in his six seasons with the Bucs. That’s 57 percent.
Everyone believes, rightly so, that Gramatica was the best kicker in Bucs history. He was a third-round pick. But Aguayo, who was picked a round earlier than Gramatica and has better numbers (yes, college numbers), folks are ready to jump out of a window over? Why?
Or do the keyboard warriors and Twitter attack dogs just like to b!tch?
Lost in all this outrage is a key element why the Bucs drafted Aguayo: the new kickoff rule that brings touchbacks out to the 25.
The moment Joe heard of the new rule, Joe right away said this would increase returns (instead of what was being spoon-fed to reporters by the NFL — that this would cut down on returns). The reason? Teams will try to pooch the ball in the corner on kickoffs rather than giving offenses a 25-yard head start to the goal line.
And per Jenny Ventras of theMMQB.com, Aguayo is exceptional at doing this.
[Jimbo] Fisher usually asked him to try to drop his kickoffs in a pocket right by the goal line with a hang time of more than four seconds so the return team would have time to get down the field and corral the returner. At his Pro Day, scouts watched him boom several kickoffs out of the end zone, and also timed the hang times of his high kicks. They were pleased that he consistently broke four seconds. What stands out about Aguayo is that he has both distance and accuracy.
Fisher says the secret to Aguayo’s success is his balance. He means his physical balance, which he believes helps him keep his swing consistent and powerful each time he kicks. For that, he can thank his dad for the soccer training. But the Florida State coaches also told NFL teams that Aguayo has a very good mental balance as well. Dad has a little something to do with that, too.
Aguayo said 70 percent of time last year Fisher asked him to pop up his kickoffs near the goal line in order to pin the kick return team in.
Of course, we won’t know for a few years if this was a smart move by the Bucs. But if someone is going to cite Aguayo’s percentage from 40-49 yards out, those folks complaining about that are actually making the case for the Bucs drafting him.
Dummies.
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:10 am
He is a Third round pick for us…We gave our 3 round and an EXTRA 4th round…we still picked as many players by the end of the draft as we would have at the beginning of the draft..
This pick is a great pick period…
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:11 am
Dag Dallas I think you went and pissed Joe off.
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:15 am
Gramatica! What happened to him? I loved him.He was money for a few years the blew the carolina game the year after the super bowl and was a terrible kicker from then on. I’d argue the fg he blew in 2001 at greenBay to win cost Dungy his job. Instead of the 2 seed, we got the 5 seed and headed to Phily.
Whats our new kickers leg like 50 and beyond. Can he bang it deep or is he known for accuracy?
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:17 am
It’s funny to me how people seek to find holes in this guy’s game, or for that matter, any of our players’ game. If you’re still knocking ANY player on this team, you should probably be questioning your loyalty at this point! The dude hasn’t made/missed a single kick for us yet. Lets hold our criticisms for just a minute, okay?
At this point, optimism should be the only emotion true fans are experiencing.
Go Bucs!
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:23 am
He’s a second round pick because we got him in the second round.
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:32 am
He was our 3rd pick of the draft…….taken in the 2nd round. Bottom line……our first three picks will start. And Roberto will be our leading scorer. ROBERTOOOOO!!!!!
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:37 am
aguayo even has a nick name for his pooch kick.hope it can become a weapon
for us.
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:53 am
Drop the mic Joe! Great piece.
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:53 am
Here we go again…..comparing players….I understand the allure in doing that…..Aguayo/Barth…..probably a better comparison than Aguayo/Gramatica……different game/rules today.
Let’s compare Aguayo to Myron Lewis……
May 3rd, 2016 at 8:54 am
@Joes – great added stats here for a side by side comparison.
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:06 am
USFBUC:
Thank you.
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:07 am
MYRON!
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:11 am
Will he tackle if a guy gets loose, that’s all,I want to know
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:40 am
Tampabaybucfan Says
“Here we go again…..comparing players….I understand the allure in doing that…..Aguayo/Barth…..probably a better comparison than Aguayo/Gramatica……different game/rules today.”
Yup. And for kickers, today’s rules make the job tougher, although, to be fair, Aguayo hasn’t played under NFL rules yet.
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:41 am
Joe can drop the mic and walk away, because he served every naysayer out there.
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:51 am
He will have less pressure kicking for the Bucs. Crowds of 35,000 plus vs 70,000 plus will be a breeze.
May 3rd, 2016 at 9:53 am
. If youre a hater lets hear who youd have taken with those two picks. Theyd have to be available at that point tho obviously. I sure wouldnt have minded javon hargrave and malcom mitchell over aguayo. I do like the pick tho having said that. I also think javons gona light it up his rookie year.
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:09 am
Great article Joe. One day when some pull their heads out of their butts, they will also see the light.
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:09 am
I don’t think anyone is really questioning Aguayo’s skill set…..only the price we paid….and that is a relevant point…..it’s always about the price…..
There is much less risk in this pick than there was with Daquan Bowers (2nd rd.) with his injury…..
And don’t forget we gave up a 1st & 4th for Revis (On second thought,,,forget)
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:11 am
The only pick I would have changed is Devonte Bond, but I trust the talent evaluation of Licht and his scouts until they prove to be failures. 4 starters last draft and most likely 3 to 4 this draft is pretty damn good in my estimation.
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:37 am
Like I said before, this guy is the #1 guy at his position, some people would rather have a person that is 5th or 6th down the line that you are unsure of over the best at his position in college history. Ridiculous. If he was any other position everyone would say we got a steal, but because we got a kicker, not just a kicker, the best kicker most accurate kicker, it’s a problem. We gave up nothing to get him people why can’t you understand that. If I’m intoxicated in a line at a club, it costs $10 to get in, the wait is over a hour long, but to skip the line it costs an extra $10. if I find $10 on the ground and skip the line I only paid my $10 to get in. The other $10 was just extra. Yes I could have waited over an hour and used the extra $10 to get a drink, but If I already was intoxicated why do I need another drink. Same thing with the draft, we used all of our picks and the extra 1 we used to make sure we got what we wanted, we didn’t give up anything. But I suspect if we didn’t draft aguayo and we were looking for a kicker halfway through the season the same people who hate this pick would say why didn’t draft him we had an extra pick we could have moved up to get him.
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:45 am
“Or do the keyboard warriors and Twitter attack dogs just like to b!tch?”
Joe, I think you’re on to something here. In fact, I think you nailed it!
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:46 am
@TBBF
And that’s the issue i have when people start complaining about the “price” paid.
Every draft pick is a gamble. There are plenty of first round picks that flame out and there are lots of late round picks that wind up flourishing.
May 3rd, 2016 at 10:51 am
@Buc_The_World
The vast majority of folks who have the negative comments about our new Kicker being drafted when he was are typically those who just echo what the so called experts say because they have no self originated thoughts on the matter and they want to try to be “right” on their stolen stance. To like the pick, one must actually be able to come up with their own thoughts and use some deductive reasoning. It is common sense to realize the move was not so stupid to draft Aguayo but we need to change the term to uncommon sense because sense is not so common these days.
May 3rd, 2016 at 11:00 am
Joe when you’re right you’re RIGHT ON! Aguayo only connected on 96% of ALL his kicks (field goals and extra points) and NEVER missing inside 30 yards or extra points if I’m correct. With the new extra point ruling this is very important! It is so funny even in the face of indisputable proof he is much better than what we have now the whiners still would rather have a defensive player who at best was the 7th best at his position than the very best kicker ever to come out of college! Who would make more of an impact THIS season or in the future…….a guy who might not even make the team or a guy who can score 100-120 points and change field position and momentum with one kick???
How can you compare the best to a nobody in Moron Lewis?
Rsrq who you foolin? You were one of the biggest whiners on draft day. Rest assured being he’s Latino with that machismo thing going on he won’t allow himself to be a punk!
Buc_The_World very good analogy sir!
May 3rd, 2016 at 11:01 am
Remember when Gramatica’s brother blew his knee out celebrating a field goal? Stay humble Roberto…
May 3rd, 2016 at 11:39 am
Yeah, this guy is good, right 87? I mean FSU can’t miss good. This guy could probably kick a ripe guava dead center through the goalposts.
May 3rd, 2016 at 11:40 am
For once, I have to agree with Joe, but I don’t need all the analysis to justify picking Roberto Aguayo in the second round. Conventional NFL wisdom says you don’t take a kicker or punter with a high draft pick or even any pick. But, every once in a while a special kicker or punter comes along, like Oakland’s punter Ray Guy who Al Davis took in the FIRST ROUND of the 1973 draft. Today, Guy is only the second pure kicker, joining placekicker Jan Stenerud, in the Hall of Fame.
Aguayo has been proclaimed “The Greatest Kicker in College Football History,” by a number of analysts. With that moniker added to his stats, he was worthy of a second round pick.
Off hand I can think of two games his accuracy would have made a big difference in last year: against DC, we lost by one after missing a field goal that would have handed us a 1-point win; and Houston where our kicker couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn all day. And, had Aguayo made the difference, TB finishes 8-8 instead of 6-10.
Good call Jason Licht and Dirk Koetter.
May 3rd, 2016 at 1:05 pm
Genius pick with rule changes in the NFL, I don’t listen to the experts cause hey get paid to bitch and I don’t listen to idiots that mimic the experts cause oaying your cable bill to watch ESPN doesn’t make you any smarter. I agree with the extra $10 on the floor analogy as an extra 4th to go get our guy 15 picks up makes a whole lotta sense to me, especially when your talking about a once in a decade kicker who fits perfectly into today’s NFL! Bravo bucs brain trust, bravo Joe.. MarkBucFan, out…
May 3rd, 2016 at 1:38 pm
Buccfan37…eh sigh. He did have a rough 2015 imo. I don’t know. I used to brag about the kid and think money every time he went on the field. 2015 changed that for me I ain’t going to hide it just cause I’m a Noles fan.
May 3rd, 2016 at 1:39 pm
The best kicker in Bucs history was the original Nigerian Nightmare Donald Igwebuike or as Perkins called him, Donald Kicker. So glad I got to use that name twice today.
Or you could say the best kicker was Steve Christie – or if you want to be purely historically accurate you would say John Carney.
Barth was a great kicker, not good or average but great kicker, before he got injured. However he wasn’t the same when he got back. Patrick Murray was an average kicker. The Bucs have historically had very good kicking and you could easily make the valid claim that kicking cost them multiple games last year. Getting a guy who is here for the next 10-15 years is worth the pick – now he just has to stick around that long.
May 3rd, 2016 at 1:45 pm
Dave I think you mean he’s never missed inside of 40. Anywho Donald Igwebuike never missed inside of 34 yards. Ever. Plus Donald was such a great guy after Perkins cut him he went to Minnesota and missed a FG against us that would have beat us. He didn’t want to hurt his former team or me as his lifelong fan, he was too good of a man. Whenever we build a new stadium for the Bucs, Donald Kicker should at the very least get a vendor stand named after him.
May 3rd, 2016 at 2:28 pm
Most Accurate Kickers In Buccaneers History w/100+ Attempts
• 1 Connor Barth 2009-2015 | 83.8%
• 2 Matt Bryant 2005-2008 | 83.1%
• 3 Martin Gramatica 1999-2004 | 76.5%
• 4 Donald Igwebuike1985-1989 | 74.0%
• 5 Michael Husted 1993-1998 | 73.1%
Note: Martin Gramatica is the only Buccaneer kicker to make the Pro Bowl (2000).
May 3rd, 2016 at 2:34 pm
Kickers in general are more accurate today, would be like listing QB yardage stats. You have to compare players to their place in history, and Donald Kicker was the best of all!
May 3rd, 2016 at 2:40 pm
Just to back up my point, here’s a fun stat….
Connor Barth is the 13th most accurate kicker in NFL history. The draft kicker haters will love that stat. But fact is 15 of the top 20 kickers ever are kicking right now – and none of the kickers in the top 20 were in the league prior to 1991. The game has changed.
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/leaders/fg_perc_career.htm
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:09 pm
The pick will probably end up being worth it. It was just a little painful to watch when we could’ve added 2 eventual defensive starters with the 3rd and 4th. Feel like they walked out of the draft with the defense less bolstered than I had hoped. I imagine they’ll have to target D line again next year, especially if Gholston, Akeem SPence, and Jack Smith underperform and/or aren’t resigned as free agents.
Seems they’re set to challenge for playoffs this year, but they won’t have the horses on D to go far.
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:24 pm
Why you ask Joe why are we outraged? Are you really that simpleminded that we have to break it down for you? BECAUSE worse than we need a kicker in the 2nd we need SAFETIES that don’t get burnt over the top and can stop the slant bit even more important than that Joe we need a PASS RUSH and in a draft where there were plenty we came away with 1 and I’m sorry Joe but we are more than 1 DL from having a PASSRUSH. Gholston, Spence, Clinton ate average and Akeem Ayers seriously? Reminds of another 1 year wonder we just signed and released in free agency (ghost). I’m OK with staying put and taking Aguayo but give up a valuable pick to do so. Idiotic…. That kicker isn’t gonna mean much when he’s kicking field goals and other teams are scoring TD’s on us. And we better get him inside the 40 to make sure he can make the kick. So many reasons why this pick is stupid.
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:29 pm
1. Connor Barth (2009-2015)
UDFA – 2008
• XPA/XPM: 136/135 = 99.3%
• 0-19: None
• 20-29: 29/29 = 100%
• 30-39: 31/34 = 91%
From 40+
• 40-49: 39/50 = 78%
• 50+: 15/23 = 65%
2. Matt Bryant (2005-2008)
UDFA – 2002
• XPA/XPM: 122/124= 98.4%
• 0-19: None
• 20-29: 33/36 = 91.6%
• 30-39: 37/37 = 100%
From 40+
• 40-49: 26/35 = 74%
• 50+: 10/26 = 38.5%
3. Martin Gramatica (1999-2004)
*Drafted: In the 3rd round (80th overall) – 1999 NFL Draft
• XPA/XPM: 181/183 = 98.9%
• 0-19: None
• 20-29: 47/50 = 94%
• 30-39: 47/58 = 81%
From 40+
• 40-49: 28/47 = 59.6%
• 50+: 15/24 = 62.5%
4. Donald Igwebuike (1985-1989)
*Drafted: In the 10th round (260th overall) of the 1985 NFL Draft
• XPA/XPM: 134/14 = 95.0%
• 0-19: 2/2 = 100%
• 20-29: 27/27 = 100%
• 30-39: 34/38 = 89.5%
From 40+
• 40-49: 22/41 = 53.6%
• 50+: 9/19v= 47.4%
5. Michael Husted (1993-1998)
*UDFA – 1993
• XPA/XPM: 151/156: 96.8%
• 0-19: 3/4 = 75%
• 20-29: 37/39 = 94.9%
• 30-39: 38/51 = 74.50%
From 40+
• 40-49: 29/46 = 63%
• 50+: 10/20= 50%
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:37 pm
Martin was literally automatic for quite sometime and than out of the blew he flamed out like no one I have ever seen. Became anything but automatic, it was terrible to watch. I am betting almost all those missed came in those last couple of years.
Barth was deadly accurate for a while but he also has become unreliable.
So we gave up a fourth for Aguayo, our third pick was our third pick whether we took in in the third or swapped it and took it a little higher. We aren’t the first team to spend our third pick on an elite kicking prospect and we won’t be the last. Not to mention there has never been a college kicking prospect of RA’s caliber in the history of the game.
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:37 pm
*Correction
4. Donald Igwebuike (1985-1989)
*Drafted: In the 10th round (260th overall) of the 1985 NFL Draft
• XPA/XPM: 134/141= 95.0%
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:38 pm
then*
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:41 pm
Got a great idea….instead of just pounding off the cannons every time we get inside of the 20..how about a cannon shot every time we hole a team inside of the 20 on a kickoff or punt return?!
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:44 pm
Donald Igwebuike? lol I was huge fan.
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:51 pm
Gramatica went downhill faster than jfro 6pack!
I’ve always felt Matt Bryant was the most solid clutch licker we had. Here’s to hoping agauyo is better!
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:53 pm
*kicker
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:54 pm
Letting Matty go to the dirty birds was one of our bigger mistakes
May 3rd, 2016 at 4:54 pm
clutch licker! Ahahahahahahhahaa that was one of the best typos ever
May 3rd, 2016 at 5:26 pm
Roberto Aguayo (2013-2015) OB’s
OB (Kicking out of bounds)
• 2013: 5
• 2014: 2
• 2015: 4
Block Kicked: 1
*Oct 24, 2015 at Georgia Tech /4th 00:00 /56 yards (Blocked)
Note: In the 3yrs at Florida St.- Roberto Aguayo never attempted an on-side kick.
Roberto Aguayo 2015 Supercut
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrcwonihW5c&feature=youtu.be
May 3rd, 2016 at 5:38 pm
Roberto Aguayo 2015 Supercut
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrcwonihW5c&feature=youtu.be
May 3rd, 2016 at 5:56 pm
“Teams will try to pooch the ball in the corner on kickoffs rather than giving offenses a 25-yard head start to the goal line.”
Easier said then done..
From 2013-2015 Roberto Aguayo has kicked the ball go out of bounds, a total of 11 times.
May 3rd, 2016 at 6:01 pm
In Comparison to 2016 UDFA Houston Texans
Ka’imi Fairbairn UCLA
Despite being the Lou Groza award winner as the best kicker in college football, he is rated as the second best kicker in this year’s draft behind Florida State’s Roberto Aguayo.
Ka’imi has good leg strength and can be very precise. He finished his college career hitting 16 consecutive field goals of 40 yards or less and 41 consecutive field goals of 35 yards or less.
On kickoffs, he never had a kick go out of bounds while posting a 62.7% touchback percentage
May 3rd, 2016 at 6:05 pm
As I said Luv, you can’t compare a kicker today or even a decade ago to a kicker from the 80s. This the reason I pointed out that 75% of the most accurate kickers in the history of the NFL are kicking right now. Back in the 80s teams only made about 35% of 50+ yard attempts (I think that’s the number), now it’s in 55% range. Donald Kicker was excellent – until that FBI sting.
Also the man that replaced Donald was Steve Christie, I had totally forgot about it but I’ve been wondering why he was allowed to leave the team after 2 years when he too was one of the best kickers in the game. Well turns out he gave coach Sam Wyche a verbal agreement that if they made him a Plan B free agent he wouldn’t leave the team and would come back – despite being by far the best available kicker in the world. Anywho Buffalo signed him and he ended up kicking and recovering a crucial onside kick in that biggest comeback ever playoff game and he kicked the game winning FG. For those that know your Bucs history you know Christie went on to be one of the top kickers in the game for Buffalo for about a decade. Also I had completely forgotten about plan B free agency. What a dolt Sam was.
May 3rd, 2016 at 6:07 pm
Buc1987 – Who didn’t love Donald Kicker!?! Well except for Ray Perkins.
May 3rd, 2016 at 6:07 pm
Ka’imi Fairborn longest kick – was a 60 yarder – against Cal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wcCdZEkenA&feature=youtu.be
May 3rd, 2016 at 6:50 pm
Don’t forget Obed Ariri. Great name
May 3rd, 2016 at 7:15 pm
And his 1 season in 84 lol
1 of the few buc players to wear number 2