The Comeback Kid
October 12th, 2016
Honored by McPaper.
Yeah, he has only made half his field goal attempts, a statistic that not only makes it unsafe for kickers to walk the streets in public, but it would move most teammates to lock that kicker in a storage unit on gamedays.
This ugly statistic hasn’t been enough to dissuade Jarrett Bell of USA Today to hand embattled Bucs rookie kicker Roberto Aguayo this week’s “Comeback Player of the Week.”
They prayed on the sideline. He delivered. The Tampa Bay Bucs added to the Carolina Panthers’ misery with a result settled by Aguayo’s 38-yard field goal as time expired Monday. The rookie made amends for the two field goals (33 yards, 46 yards) he missed earlier in the game. Tampa Bay invested a second-round pick on Aguayo, who made 69 of 78 field goals (88.5%) and never missed an extra point at Florida State. But he’d missed a PAT and his two previous field goal tries in the three games before Monday night. At the finish in Charlotte, though, the Bucs were able to exhale.
Kicking at a clip of 50 percent, you don’t know if a made field goal is skill or an accident. Or, it could be both?
Thus is the rollercoaster we shall all have to ride. Rookie kickers drafted high routinely struggle their first season in the NFL. And only the devout haters are psychotic enough to believe the man responsible for trading up into the second round to draft Aguayo, Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht, is going to cut him this year. That’s simply not going to happen.
Look at the bright side: Aguayo’s kicking will provide plenty of drama to take your mind off all the warts this team has, divisional road win Monday or not.
October 12th, 2016 at 8:20 am
Gotta say when we’re on 3rd n long on offense, I’m not too worried we WONT convert
Between 3rd n long on defense
and #19 kicking, my blood pressure rises
Lol I love my BUCS
When they screwed up, they immediately made amends. No time to sulk. They kept fighting
So proud of there response to adversity
October 12th, 2016 at 8:33 am
That I as a great grinding ugly game. We showed we had scrap and fight in us after all. We are not going to be contenders overnight. Let’s just hope we keep slowly getting better this team is still very young.
October 12th, 2016 at 8:33 am
That was *
October 12th, 2016 at 8:38 am
Devout haters?…oh yes, it must be “devout haters” that want accountability for players and lousy GM personnel decisions.
October 12th, 2016 at 8:43 am
Nobody loves kickers who hit at 50%. Brindza was just last year, so that’s fresh on everyone’s mind, Joe included – Bada Brindza!
October 12th, 2016 at 8:52 am
By the way, I definitely believe Koetter wasn’t happy with Aguayo being picked so high. His breaking point is going to be a lot faster than Licht’s. We all know who’ll win that argument though.
October 12th, 2016 at 9:11 am
I wouldn’t want to walk the streets in “pubic” either. Might get me arrested
October 12th, 2016 at 9:27 am
I was at the game on Monday night rooting for OUR BUCS and the Panther fans were saying the same thing about their placekicker Gano. They don’t know what they are going to get from kick to kick. It was so nice to be able to walk out of Bank of America stadium with tons of other Buc fans chanting TAMPA….BAY!! Obnoxious yes, but fun nonetheless!!! Buc fan for life!
October 12th, 2016 at 9:27 am
He gets a free pass, he’s a Seminole. They can do no wrong in most of these posters eyes.
October 12th, 2016 at 9:28 am
How long do you give him Nole fans? One year? Two? Three?
October 12th, 2016 at 9:29 am
The Rams traded up and spent a fortune on Jared Goff with the first overall pick and he is sitting on the bench because he isn’t performing.
We are able to bring Noah Spence along slowly while he develops.
The problem with a kicker is he has to do his job….no one else can.
Jason Licht heaped immense pressure on Aguayo by trading up to choose him….Aguayo didn’t ask for that.
Sure, we have to hold Aguayo responsible and he deserves criticism…..but it’s Jason Licht who is in the cross-hairs.
October 12th, 2016 at 9:46 am
Chris…I’m a Noles fan and I can’t STAND this kid.
Damn it I’m tired of repeating myself over Aguayo but here we go again.
I was 1000% against drafting Aguayo in ANY round.
So how many years? Well today or tomorrow would be good for me.
October 12th, 2016 at 9:50 am
Ok 87, I should announce, all Nole fans but 87. You hated the pick from the time it was made.
October 12th, 2016 at 9:56 am
Wasn’t it Chucky G who said that his rookie kicker Sebastian G wasn’t anything great his first NFL year? You bet Licht put a ton of pressure on Aguayo w/his pick! His misses look like he’s trying too hard and blowing it. He sure has the leg; look at all the touchbacks he’s had so far on kickoffs. Thank all the gawds for this bye week. Perfect timing. Hope Roberto learns how to relax. Monday Night’s WINNING field goal should help. GO BUCS!!
October 12th, 2016 at 10:17 am
2 probs I have with Agyauo. 1.) He always wants it on the Right hash. What happens when it’s on the left for a 56 yard FG and in his head he’s whining it’s not on the right. You know he’s going to over compensate and kick it wide right. 2.) He flails his arms like a chicken when he kicks. His balance easily gets off and he mis-kicks. He had a lot more room for error on the wider Hashes in College. Watch other kickers and their arms and then watch RA19.
October 12th, 2016 at 10:19 am
Thats why this team will never ever win with GM Jason Gump.
the best teams believe that production on the field is everything. everyone is accountable and team first
it does not matter where he was picked in the draft order, how much he makes and if he is a long time vet
**Aguayo is on the team because of Jason Gumps mistake
**Vjax should have been cut and came back with the minimum vet salary with playing time depended on PRODUCTION
** we could have brought in 2 productive receivers like marvin jones and travis benjamin
**FK next year. we could have been a very damn good team THIS year
**If Jason Gump pulled that drafting a kicker in the 2nd round BS stupidity with the patriots or seattle…Bellichick or Pete Carroll would have had Forrest Gump taken into a room and beat his arse and banned him from the stadium for life
***No where spense, Ryan Smith, Caleb Benenouch are complete trash
October 12th, 2016 at 10:24 am
I was seriously looking for that yellow handkerchief on the field after the ball split the uprights, then he would under pressure to do it again, that is usually a Buc life
October 12th, 2016 at 11:25 am
This has to be a sorry, pathetic franchise when a Bum kicker, who make 50% of his kicks is getting headlines. SMDH
October 12th, 2016 at 12:44 pm
i guess nobody is going to speak out publicly but the owners made that decision despite opposition from the scouts and the football people over there.