Surprising Gay Numbers
January 17th, 2020
In Bucs record book.
Right around Thanksgiving, Joe had a hunch the Bucs kickers problems were solved.
For years, specifically dating back to 2014, the kicking situation with the Bucs has been so bad Joe can almost find no words to describe it.
Trainwreck, vomit-inducing, comical, heinous, they all apply. Kicker after kicker was run in (and out), draft picks spent, millions of Team Glazer loot burned in an effort to solve the kicking woes. Nothing worked.
Then about the time the holidays started, rookie kicker Matt Gay was kicking so well, Joe thought just maybe, possibly the Bucs kicker curse was coming to an end.
Whoops!
Gay finished the season with a Roberto Aguayo-like streak and totally stunk up the joint in the final two home games at the Den of Depression.
And Gay’s percentages were not that far off from Aguayo, a name that still gives Bucs fans the shivers.
So Joe was going over the recently released Bucs 2019 Season Review put out by the team, and Joe noted Gay set several Bucs kicking records. Two were extra points made (43) and points scored by a rookie (124).
Both records were held by Martín Gramática.
The extra points record is interesting (not because many folks want to run off the quarterback who was responsible for Gay kicking all of those extra points) but that the extra point rules are different today than when Gramática was kicking.
Back when Gramática was in the league, extra points were 20-yard chip shots. Since 2015, the NFL’s extra points have been kicked from 33-yards out.
It doesn’t take a calculus major, though, to figure out Gay’s kicking records with the Bucs is more volume of kicking than accuracy or percentage. While Gay (surprisingly) holds a few Bucs records, that doesn’t mean he has no need to improve. What it does demonstrate is the Bucs have a guy who has some talent.
January 17th, 2020 at 11:06 am
40 TDs people!!!!!
Stop picking on him!!!!!
Oops not talking about Jameis?!?!
My bad.
January 17th, 2020 at 11:13 am
Let’s hope he makes the second year jump like the other position players do.
January 17th, 2020 at 11:18 am
Tho his percentages finished shockingly close to Aguayo the eye test is much different. Gay had so many barely misses and Aguayo just flat out miss hit the ball so often. One area that Aguayo was better was game winners, probably the key stat. Second year has to be better.
January 17th, 2020 at 11:23 am
And then….on the eve of the Atlanta game….Joe runs an article about how very important that game was to Matt Gay…..to end the season with success…..BINGO……can anyone say jinx?
Gay had a bad game…pure and simple….but he does have talent…..the strong leg and I believe the right demeanor.
Our punter Pinion…..most don’t know that he led the entire NFL in touchback percentage. Not too important unless you are on our kickoff coverage team.
January 17th, 2020 at 11:26 am
Yes, those numbers are pretty Gay!
January 17th, 2020 at 11:27 am
I wouldnt give up.on him, I want to see him back
January 17th, 2020 at 11:32 am
Franchise Tag him!!!!
Setting team records means he’s a freakin legend!!! No one better in the draf or in free agency gotta lock him up
January 17th, 2020 at 11:53 am
Kicking seems to be a league wide issue.. But that being said we weren’t awful.
Field goals made we were tied for 11th with 27
Field goals attempted we were 6th with 35
Field goal % was 77% which was good for 22nd in the NFL
Gay is still a rookie I think he will improve. We would also as a team like to see some of these field goal attempts come down a little bit and convert those to TD’s but he still needs to improve regardless.
A little more interesting was that the Titans were 44% they made 8 of 18 field goals… Yikes
January 17th, 2020 at 12:12 pm
Just like with Rojo, Matt Gay’s future will be determined with by how he approaches the off season and the 2020 season. Many, many players need to get that first year out of the way before they can start getting better, including kickers.
January 17th, 2020 at 12:26 pm
Bonzai
Agree about development. This is why it amazes me people who are willing to wait for FIVE years and then spend 30 million can’t give Gay one year with peanuts on the line in terms of salary cap.
Just like “Blameless” has the big arm…Gay has tons of potential because of the strength of his leg.
Bring in competition to make sure he’s not a choker. If he plays well in preseason great!
January 17th, 2020 at 12:40 pm
Can’t trust the Gay kicker. Time to send him off to the 5th round grave yard with Snoop McPlaybook.
January 17th, 2020 at 12:56 pm
I am not sold on this dude and hope the Bucs don’t assume that doing the same thing over and over will produce different results. His shank on the chipshot against the Giants was the worst choke job by a kicker I’ve seen in a really really long time. When the money is on the line, the dude gags. I hope they can find better.
January 17th, 2020 at 1:07 pm
And I believe Gay also holds the Bucs record for missed extra points.
Oh man.
January 17th, 2020 at 1:22 pm
Gay will be fine.
January 17th, 2020 at 1:40 pm
Need to give him a chance to improve… Not very many Rookie Kickers had great “Stats” Adam V did not. Gay’s misses aren’t total shanks like some. His are just slightly off to the left or right off the Hash’s.
January 17th, 2020 at 1:51 pm
Great so now we need Jason Licht to go out again and find us a kicker? To win the job if Gay can’t hack it??? Are you kidding me? This dude has brought in more kicker then I can count. There’s no way he should get another chance. He will never find us a kicket never!!
If I’m the Glazer’s I use an outside source to find camp competition. If the new kicker wins the job Jason has to go. I would say 🔥 Jason right now but he did get us a very nice DL and he did draft us a very solid secondary for right now. It’s a tough call but come on dude….I’ve seen teams fix the kicker spot midseason. Six year is beyond too long. It physically hurts thinking about it.
January 17th, 2020 at 2:11 pm
Hopefully Licht won’t overreact a pick a kicker with our 14th overall pick.
January 17th, 2020 at 3:03 pm
He will go down as the only Gay to choke. He doesn’t like them short he prefers the long ones. The long ones he puts right down the middle.
January 17th, 2020 at 3:32 pm
R.O.
True. You also see few, very few, rookie kickers in the league. I have no idea the stats but it seems that the leagues younger pk’s have been on more than 1 roster before settling in with one team. I could be wrong but it sure seems like a rookie kicker is more likely to find success with another team rather than the team He originally signs with.
January 17th, 2020 at 3:51 pm
Watch the Giants game. The failed game winner was a total fat-shank. He hit the ground a foot behind the ball for crying out loud. Choke artist. Gagger.
Give him a chance but give the Bucs a chance too, bring in a slew of FAs and UDFAs to compete with him.
January 17th, 2020 at 3:56 pm
Gay set 2 Buc records. You know what that means. Give him a multi-year extension before we lose him. Individual records are all that matters.
January 17th, 2020 at 4:07 pm
Per pewter plank
Rumors have begun to spread today that Winston is being signed to a large contract
January 17th, 2020 at 4:08 pm
LOL and pause at the title of this article. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
January 17th, 2020 at 5:06 pm
Not worried yet. He’s definitely got a strong leg and hit several 50+ yarders. However, had he made two, late game, FGs (Giants and Falcons), the Bucs would have finished 9-7. Got to hit those. Give him another year and we’ll reevaluate.
January 17th, 2020 at 6:44 pm
Boy Gay has two records but we use this post to talk about the Greatness of WINSTON
Sooo Joe hey it is
If Winston is back next year I bet a Bucket O Beers he throws more INTs
Pick 6 in first game
If he does JOE HAS TO WRITE HE IS WRONG ABOUT CAPT TURNOVER
January 17th, 2020 at 7:20 pm
He will be fine, sucks he cost us 2 games but it happens to everyone. Hopefully this makes him hungry and he doesn’t become a mental midget like the rest of your past kickers
January 17th, 2020 at 9:28 pm
This guy is not trustworthy yet. Give him another chance but please, for all that is good in the world, bring in some competition.
January 18th, 2020 at 11:49 am
Buczilla has the wisdom! Amen.
And given it’s the Bucs, he’ll go all Aguayo Folk in 2020 and there will be some bartender kicking for the Bucs by week 9,
January 18th, 2020 at 12:38 pm
Is this where we come to use the word “gay” in a sentence?
Matt Gay must be a tough guy. Imagine role call in junior high school
January 20th, 2020 at 12:21 am
The dude is a gag artist, befitting his last name. He has no idea where the ball is going when he kicks it, his form is awful. Cut him now. I was on the let him compete with 70 other kickers bandwagon. Naa. He stinks, he’s not a clutch performer, and he won’t be. Time to find a bartender that is automatic from 40 in.