Stroud: Aguayo “Could Be The Epitaph On Jason Licht’s Departure”
September 26th, 2016
The Jason Licht boo birds are chirping way too loudly.
Veteran Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud, the big cheese at Tampa Bay’s premier newspaper, was talking about the demise of general manager Jason Licht today — just three field goal attempts into rookie Roberto Aguayo’s career.
Considering tens of thousands were listening on WDAE-AM 620, Joe can’t ignore the chatter.
The money line from Stroud, on the heels of Aguayo missing a critical 41-yarder and an extra point yesterday against the Rams, was that Aguayo “could be the epitaph on Jason Licht’s departure.”
Man, this collective Aguayo freakout is really going over the top.
Joe is angst-ridden about Aguayo like the next fan, but let’s stay grounded in reality.
First, Aguayo is 7-of-8 on extra points and 1-for-3 on field goals with misses from 41 and 45 yards. That’s alarming, but hardly cause for September chatter about the ousting of the GM.
Second, Licht is coming off what could prove to be the greatest draft in Bucs history, better known as the grand slam. A potential screwup on a kicker is not going to sink him. Team Glazer calls Licht the “nuts and bolts” GM. They appreciate and approve of his approach, which includes pure fearlessness.
Team Glazer knows what landed then-Division-III left tackle Ali Marpet on the roster via a trade-up to the second round is the exact same style and set of balls that plucked Aguayo in the second round.
If Aguayo becomes a bust, he would represent only one frowny face on Licht’s resumé, but if that day comes, really all that was invested was a third- and fourth-round pick to trade up. Aguayo would sit next to Austin Seferian-Jenkins on the resumé score sheet. Simple as that.
Picking Aguayo just wasn’t a do-or-die kind of move for Licht’s career like the GM’s selection of Jameis Winston, head coach Dirk Koetter and, to a slightly lesser extent, Mike Evans and Donovan Smith.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:01 am
Marpet is a Left Guard
September 26th, 2016 at 11:02 am
Slight over reaction and exaggeration. Amazing when people are so quick to write-off a person or player.I think Aguayo’s problem is balance. His arms flail around like chicken wings when he’s kicking.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:04 am
The Licht honks like to point to his drafting, but that is only one part of being a decent GM. His free agent pickups, especially on defense, specifically in the secondary, have been awful. You can’t draft your way to a Super Bowl, it takes a mix. Licht has made this defense WORSE every year.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:05 am
It doesn’t matter if Aguayo never makes another kick, it is stupid to fire Licht over him. At what point are we going to stop firing people, and give them some time to build this thing? As soon as someone makes a mistake, everyone wants them gone. How has that worked out for us since we got rid of Gruden? Stop firing people.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:05 am
Definitely think Licht should be here for the long haul. That said, it’s concerning that Lambert is playing 78% (undrafted rookie) and your second round pick in Spence is playing 18%. Not good however you want to spin it. (Pass rush specialist excuse)
September 26th, 2016 at 11:06 am
The freak out is warranted Roberto is mentally weak and had problems in pre season and they continue on into the regular season. While Licht is superior to Dom in the draft he is not very good at building a team. Ignoring holes at receiver, safety and Dl to draft a kicker is just awful
September 26th, 2016 at 11:08 am
We need to sign Robbie Gould ASAP!
September 26th, 2016 at 11:09 am
No, marpet is a right guard.
Sure, but Marpet was a left tackle in college. That’s what Joe wrote, as it further illustrates the fast success he’s had at a position he didn’t play in college.–Joe
September 26th, 2016 at 11:09 am
Licht will be fired for the losing not drafting a mentally weak kicker
September 26th, 2016 at 11:09 am
Nope…
ASJ not here no more.. we needed oline help
Charles Simms in the third… we were deep at RB… we needed oline help
VH3 doesn’t even start on the outside.. first round pick..
Risked getting VH3 to get a 4th
Trade that 4th and 3rd to move up into the 2nd. For a Kicker.. cause we were a kicker away from greatness… the weapon that doesn’t miss they said.
Anyone else in that draft made an impact, at all? Or start?
With the framing you used above, you’d think Aguayo is his only question mark. I however have wayyyyyy more issue. Including free agency. But we won’t go there
September 26th, 2016 at 11:09 am
Next year will tell. If they can’t win it doesn’t matter. Owner should hire a. Football guy. To make sure Light doesn’t sign a bunch of free agents. To save his butt. Thus sending us back to the drawing board.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:10 am
put Roberto on IR with suckatitis and sign some one else. it is embarrassing to watch
September 26th, 2016 at 11:10 am
Agree with you Hawaiian. Glazers should give Licht and Koetter 3 full years, regardless of the results. We were 1-15 two years ago. Anybody who expected a playoff run this year is delusional. I’m as disappointed as anybody, but firing people and starting over every year is stupid.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:12 am
“…only one frowny face on Licht’s resume”
This guy has presided over a plethora of personnel failures including this fragile kicker AguaOh,no who makes us rather go for two after every TD than take a chance on this bum choking away a routine kick.
Didn’t another 2nd rounder ASJ just get released too? Frowny faces everywhere. Let’s stop with the biased evaluations.
Let’s learn how to read. Yes, Aguayo potentially would be one frowny face, Joe didn’t write “the only” frowny face.–Joe
September 26th, 2016 at 11:12 am
You mean a 3rd and 4th round pick that could have been used to draft a safety or another position of need? If the Bucs can’t figure out how to fix Aguayo the young man will find himself sitting on a couch on Sunday with Kyle Brindza next year.
When evaluating GMs we can’t only look at the draft. Licht’s free agency record is suspect too. J.R. Sweezy isn’t helping the team at all.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:14 am
The pressure is on now for our awesome 2nd round pick. Let’s hope he either gets over it and shapes up or we admit the mistake and ship him out. If he makes those kicks we would have just needed a field goal to win at the end. I have a feeling we might go for two a little bit more. If we only convert half our 2 point attempts, it’s as good as 100% PAT kicks, which we won’t get from this kid. Food for thought.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:15 am
Tampa bay times in general is a sinking ship. What stroud says on wdae Rick and Tom is a cheap reflection of what he writes for the times. We would not have any grounded analysis of our bucs at all were it not for joe.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:17 am
Licht’s “Grand Slam” you ONLY you Joe called it, sure doesn’t feel like one. Smith is still soft and suspect as a LT (Joe you often say how you wish they still had Penn).
Whaaaat? Smith is not soft. Joe doesn’t still want Penn. Love Penn, sure, but Smith has been more than solid on a very strong O-line. Wait till you see what Joe has on the Smith subject later today. –Joe
Better than Sapp and Brooks…Really Joe? BTW its not as hard to hit a Grand Slam when you pick 1st in every round coming off of a 2-14 season. Look Jason Licht is now 9-26 as a GM, but I’ve never seen him coach or a call a play but since that’s how we judge a GM not good but give him more time. Why is Stroud undefeated? I think he should be fired, tired of him
September 26th, 2016 at 11:18 am
Joe, I fully agree. I think Licht has done an amazing job and the grand slam is just part of it. Everyone considers a draft successful if you get two starters – we got 4!
For those who like to blame Licht for the ridiculously bad FA signing in year’s 1 and 2, Lovie was clearly in charge. Lovie had ALL the power, especially the first year. That is no longer the case, and the signing we did this past year were very good value considering what Grimes and Ayers could have gotten from another team.
What one can legitimately blame Licht for not picking up someone to give us better depth at WR – horrible. AND, how did they not see how bad our S are?!!
But fire Licht? Over a bad trade-up on a kicker? You would have to be crazy!
September 26th, 2016 at 11:21 am
For me not spending available cap space on a Safety & speed WR are worse than Aguayo….look at the team that just beat us…#1 overall pick….traded up…and he can’t beat out Keenum
September 26th, 2016 at 11:22 am
Wow, people need to settle down. Aquayo’s problems are fixable and I hope sooner than latter.
If not, I’m sure we’ll move on from him, but it’s too early to call it now.
Jason Licht is a very solid GM and we’re lucky to have him. He’s allowed to make a couple of mistakes especially when trying to rebuild a long term winning franchise.
If he was a knee-jerk personality, like a lot of our so called fans, then I would be worried.
The bottom line is we’re a team on the rise and it will take some time.
Temper your expectations.
Yesterday’s lose was tough…..I have no fingernails at the moment……but despite our mistakes we were in the game and could have, probably should have won.
We’re still near the top of our division and we have 13 more games to go.
So get pissed at giving up big pass plays, poor clock management and a QB that is still learning….
But don’t call for the firings of Licht, Koetter and Smith
Oh yeah…….we have the same record as the Panthers too don’t we?
September 26th, 2016 at 11:22 am
Kicking stats for perspective:
Janikowski was 22/32 his rookie year. He missed 1 kick from 30-39 6 kicks from 40-49 and 3 more from beyond.
Aguayo growing pains
Pick isn’t bad yet. It took Janikowski 3 years before he sniffed 90%
September 26th, 2016 at 11:23 am
Valid point really is all should breathe through their noses. For aguayo, for licht, for the bucs. Lots of teams now poised over the panic button. Not surprised of bucs losing yesterday, will not be surprised if they win one of next two. As for aguayo, janikowski had a terrible rookie year. Breathe through your nose.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:25 am
The world today is instant gratification or pissed off…nobody can wait for a minute and let this team develop like it takes.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:26 am
Somebody see if Ray Finkle is available. Laces out!
September 26th, 2016 at 11:31 am
And how’s the Raiders been after that year? Yet again another franchise that drafted and signed awful free agents after their Super Bowl year, please stop comparing this mentally weak kicker to others. He’s not missing from 50 +, he’s missing from 40. And that’s three wasted picks, him at secon along with the third and fourth. This teams has too many holes to gamble on a 2nd round kicker. That’s the whole point. Not that Venitari got it after his first year.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:32 am
Let’s say we fire Licht, ok, well who are we gonna hire?!!! Continuity is key to winning.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:32 am
Aguayo missed kicks but that kickoff to pin them deep late in the game was beautiful and potentially could have been the game changer…don’t know if it’s the hash marks that have this guy off kilter from college or what but no need to panic yet…
September 26th, 2016 at 11:32 am
SO wait, Lovie had all the power but Licht drafted the grand slam? So Lovie or Licht picked Kadeem Edwards, ASJ, Herron, Bell, Clay and Iosefa? Because those six guys aren’t anywhere from 1-2 years ago.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:32 am
John, instant gratification? It’s been 15 frigging years. We make Cleveland Brown type maneuvers in the draft and free agency. Does that look like a recipe for future success?
September 26th, 2016 at 11:34 am
Aguayo lost his mojo in 2015 and should have never even been drafted in the 5th round and I’m a Nole.
Thee end.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:34 am
The kickoff happened because they played shallow for the onside kick and the returner made a bonehead pickup of a ball going into the endzone.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:35 am
Buc87, the rare FSU/Gator fan that admits they f up on state players from time to time
September 26th, 2016 at 11:37 am
You can’t hit on every pick…even the good teams miss on picks, but to me Aguayo IS un-fixable.
He won’t right his ship and unfortunately we all have to live it for 2016.
Licht can have one more draft, but we can’t be drafting that high.
We have to go 8-8 and I don’t see it the rest of the way. I see 7.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:37 am
The right people can turn it around quickly. The talent level in the NFL isn’t that disparaging.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:38 am
Joe- your Grand Slam analogy is very good and pithy. But, in all actuality Jason Licht hit for solo home-runs. Considered this way Licht did a much more difficult thing then just hitting a grand slam
September 26th, 2016 at 11:42 am
Many posters had it right that the Bucs would lose to the Rams. I didn’t see the Bucs winning this game either, or the next two coming up. Agree that beyond the open date that the Bucs will show improvement. I’m also not knocking the coaches or the GM, I believe they are on the right track to building a winning Bucs program in the near future.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:49 am
I guess you haven’t figured things out around here. I’ll help you out.
If a draft pick or free agent signing works out then Jason Licht is a fantastic talent evaluater who is beyond reproach.
If a draft pick or free agent signing fails here then it’s Lovie Smith’s fault.
Yes, J.R. Sweezy’s injury is Lovie Smith’s fault. Same with Roberto Aguayo’s missed FGs. Don’t ask me how. It must be Lovie’s cologne still in the air at One Buc. The smell alters the ability of the neurotransmitters to fire correctly in the player’s brains. It’s why Ayers got hurt. It’s why Doug Martin got hurt. It’s why Aguayo keeps missing kicks and Sweezy is drinking beer at home.
September 26th, 2016 at 11:49 am
Jason Licht drafting is jut as worse as his free agent signings. I don’t know what these delusional fans are seeing.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:01 pm
All I know is a good GM has to WIN games by producing good players and coaches to stay in this league and those misses last night cost us points and going for two twice which resulted in 0 points. Everyone knows the Glazers are known to clean house using highly toxic, anti-MRSA material in very short time frames.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:02 pm
To all here:
Jason Licht did not hit a Grand Slam. He did something much more difficult: He hit 4 Solo Home- Runs in the same game. What Licht did was much more like what Reggie Jackson did way back in the World Series. Licht hit 4 Home Runs on 4 pitches in what was a crucial, organizational- defining draft.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:03 pm
The 3 seasons that Licht has been our GM, we should have had at least 21 draft picks. But we only have 11 Licht draft picks on the roster, that is a HORRIBLE stat. A Chimp can do better.. SMDH
September 26th, 2016 at 12:06 pm
The Bucs are 9-26 in the Jason Licht regime, and people are talking about Home Runs and Grand Slams. It appears to me all he’s done is Take A Dump.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:07 pm
OMG – agreeing with Jose’! No one is calling for Licht to be canned for drafting Famous Porky just because he throws 4 interceptions (multiple games) and loses a fumble! NO!
The 4 points missed by the kicker was not enough to tie or give the Bucs the lead. Yes, he might have kicked a field goal to win the game, but then again, he might have missed it!
The misses that hurt are those players who are obtained only to be let go and provide Pro Bowl efforts for other teams!
Greg Schiano
September 26th, 2016 at 12:08 pm
Jason Schit is TERRIBLE, and it’s time these DELUSIONAL fans accept the fact.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:11 pm
Using a second rounder on a good kicker is grounds enough to start talking about getting rid of a GM. When that kicker ends up sucking, that simmer turns to a boil.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:13 pm
Licht is an abysmal failure he has struck out on EVERY SINGLE FA signing, grimes his past his prime, ayers dont know, the fact he couldnt grab one WR and sign reggie nelson to play in florida was ridiculous the bucs do not have one NFL safety on the roster, much rather they draft tunsil instead of VH3, licht trying to outsmart ppl makes him look like a clueless fantasy gm…. ps glazers great choice on lovie over zimmer
September 26th, 2016 at 12:16 pm
licht could be on the hot seat…with so many holes on this roster you give up picks for a kicker….COULDVE GRABBED A SAFETY, WR OR DE….I wouldn’t be surprised if Roberto somehow ended up on ir with a leg injury….GO BUCS!!!!
September 26th, 2016 at 12:21 pm
“Let’s learn how to read.”
It was a direct quote, so….
September 26th, 2016 at 12:23 pm
@lightningbuc-
Joe referenced what he thought might be the greatest draft in Bucs history- the grand- slam. 4 solo home runs is an even better more telling analogy. In truth, no matter what happens to Licht the 2015 draft “MAY” well prove to be even better than the 1995 Sapp/Brooks draft. If that ends up happening- with or without Licht- that would prove that Jason Licht as a GM did something very rare for any GM.
I know that I need to learn patience with this team. I don’t like it at all and I get really pissed at what I see. Unfortunately I believe we’re going to have to continue to be patient and hang in there with the guys that we have
September 26th, 2016 at 12:23 pm
Lakeland buc you are spot on, the guy has not hit on one FA signing, him trying to get cute by signing marpet, whoopty doo, im sure there was an SEC OL available there amd get marpet later… stevie wonder could see the bucs dont have an NFL safety, but licht was playing in his pool
September 26th, 2016 at 12:24 pm
Wow- the lunatic Licht lambasters are out in droves today.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:28 pm
Hey… at least he didn’t trade up for Luke Stocker, sign a safety 7th overall, or resign Michael Clayton for $10 million guaranteed.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:37 pm
Sign Brindza! Better yet, trade a draft pick for him. No wait, trade for him before you cut him so you can quickly re-sign a guy that you cut in the first place who was at the peak of his game and then cut him again after you trade up to draft a kicker in the 2nd round.
Life truly is stranger than fiction. See 2016 presidential election
September 26th, 2016 at 12:39 pm
Was not a wise choice picking this kicker in the second round for this exact reason, if he fails, it looks bad. However, there is no debate IMO about Lichts job security. His good picks outweigh his bad so far.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:53 pm
Aguayo didn’t lose that game. It was lost due to bad clock management.
September 26th, 2016 at 12:58 pm
DallasBuc…LMFAO!
September 26th, 2016 at 12:59 pm
Seminole bill….What’s Aguayo’s job?
September 26th, 2016 at 1:05 pm
If Licht gets fired, it will not be because of Aguayo. It will be because the team wins less than last year, which just might be a possibilty after losing a shootout to the Rams at home. It’s sad because this team needs consistency more than ever atm.
September 26th, 2016 at 1:05 pm
87- is that question rhetorical? Can it be answered by jumping in a pool with all of your clothes on?
September 26th, 2016 at 1:33 pm
JOE.. TWO high draft picks for a kicker… what a waste!!!!!!!! bucs had a decent kicker already on the team…so many draft needs .What round were the top nfl kickers drafted in the last 5 yrs?
September 26th, 2016 at 1:52 pm
Sure seems like a team loss to me. Kicker, QB in the clutch, defence and bad clock management from coaches. A bad half next week for #3 they should put Glennon in. Showcase him because the time to trade him is running out. The season is over our schedule is tough. With two bottom feeders off our schedule….its over
September 26th, 2016 at 2:04 pm
Licht is the best GM we’ve ever had. Aguayo is looking like a bad pick. All GMs have bad picks from time to time. Anyone talking about Licht’s epitaph at this point is foeking retarded. The end.
September 26th, 2016 at 2:16 pm
Agree Hawaiian gotta quit this firing mentality. We are starting to look like a joke franchise. I never liked kicker pick, but all gm make mistakes. Licht is building team through draft and it takes time.
September 26th, 2016 at 2:58 pm
It doesn’t matter if Roberto is a bust or a fall of famer. The issue is he was a luxury pick for a playoff team not these bucs who have more holes in their roster than beating up on the browns in the preseason will reveal. He had a chance to get some young talented hungry players and he chose a kicker who’s hardly on the field but doing major damage by not pouring critical points on the board.
Dude had a life coach or something after two preseason games no is not a good look
September 26th, 2016 at 3:04 pm
I think that I would be less concerned if he wasn’t missing extra-points. ALL other kicks are variable. PAT’s are always from the same spot and should be a mere matter of rote rehearsal.
September 26th, 2016 at 3:16 pm
He’s done some good things as GM. He seems to be a good talent evaluator. But he’s done some incredibly dumb things as a GM too… and dumb things get you fired. ASJ was a dumb pick and got cut in a very public way. Thinking a 3rd string qb like ryan griffin is important is very stupid because it takes a roster spot away from a back up ( who could then cover kicks so one of your sack leaders doesn’t have too and tears his acl. And finally he uses 2 picks on a kicker which are a dime a dozen, usually take a few years to get it right and you blow valuable assets on a kicker who blows a game for you. If we got logan mankins for a 4th, I’m sure we could have gotten a good safty for a 3 and a 4 OR we could of drafted say jon bullard in the 3rd and a safty or wr in the 4th.
September 26th, 2016 at 3:52 pm
It was and still is a terrible terrible pick. Could’ve had a receiver and kept Barth
September 26th, 2016 at 3:53 pm
The GM’s job is to build a championship caliber roster. Bottom line. Licht should definitely be on the hot seat.
September 26th, 2016 at 4:42 pm
The best bet would be to put aguayo on IR for the rest of the year with some bull spit injury to get his head right. The people out here saying that lovie had control in the draft are also the ones that b!tch that LICHT didn’t DRAFT Loser lovie any DEFENCE. Obviously Licht has had total control in the draft and his good picks FAR outwiegh his bad picks. And the first 2 years LOVIE had a HUGE say in who we payed in Free agency. Every1 gets upset on GameDay when we are down or losing. And I’ll be the first to admit that I say dumb things, but Licht will not be Ur scapegoat. This loss is squarely on Aguayo.
September 26th, 2016 at 5:07 pm
The Bucs need to place Aguayo on the Injured Reserve with a mysterious leg injury and move on. Those misses at inopportune times really put pressure on the Bucs.
It sure would be nice to have a WR and Safety with those 3rd and 4th round picks spent on Aguayo. It’s one thing to hit or miss with a bold move on a guard, most people won’t even notice. Swinging big and missing on a kicker is obvious to everyone, even my middle school age daughter.
And Joes, there are many other demerits on Jason Licht’s record so far. Cutting Darrelle Revis. Trading Mark Barron. Free Agency: Michael Johnson. Anthony Collins. Josh McCown. George Johnson. Alterraun Verner. Bruce Carter.
If Aguayo ends up being a bust, Rick Stroud may be right.
September 26th, 2016 at 5:40 pm
Stroud is an idiot
September 26th, 2016 at 5:45 pm
The problem is when you try to outsmart everyone and do something that no one else would think to do because you are ‘the smartest guy in the room.’ Then look like a complete and total tool who just blew multiple assets on a pick that most GM’s laughed at.
Yeah, that’s a little worse than your usual 2nd round bust.
September 26th, 2016 at 5:52 pm
The fantasy football analogy would be spending your first round pick on Adrian Peterson. Sure, he busted but that’s life. People get injured (and old), at least he led the league in rushing last year and people expected him to have close to the same year.
Then imagine you had a Jason Licht in your fantasy draft, and he spends a 2nd round pick on a kicker even though no one does that. The entire concept of it is crazy and stupid to begin with. Then that kicker, let’s call him “Aguayo” doesnt even play well. He sucks and scores him very few points and is cut. Is it the same thing as drafting Peterson? Or does one pick look infinitely worse than the other?
September 26th, 2016 at 8:50 pm
Well, I guarantee that Licht won’t be let go because aguayo is a head case. And if he is, it just speaks to the ineptitude of the ownership here. Idk how thick Ur skulls are, but it is quite clear that Loser Lovie had a large voice in who was aquired in free agency. Lots of ex bears and every1 was very specific to the Tampa 2 scheme. But nobody will talk about soon to be pro bowl 4th round MLB Kwon Alexander. No credit there for licht? You lovie lovin racist f#ck$.
September 27th, 2016 at 1:51 am
Didn’t Agauyo just have a good game at Atlanta and everyone singing his praises?? Many people to blame for the loss. It was a team loss.