Pewter Plank’s Buccaneers’ Over/Under 2016
By James Yarcho
Yeah, yeah, yeah…Jason Licht traded up into the second round to draft a kicker. He only happens to be the greatest kicker in NCAA history.
The Buccaneers’ kicking game was putrid, to say the least, in 2015. They lost two games legitimately because of missed kicks, and potentially two more due to the massive momentum swing of misses. Aguayo was brought in, with high expectations, to fix that.
Some already scoffed at him having seen him miss some 45-50 yarders in OTAs and mini-camp, but Aguayo is going to be one of the most reliable kickers in the game. You can argue that, in the NFL, there are three to four “elite” kickers, three to four awful kickers, and everyone in the middle is interchangeable. Aguayo was not drafted to be an interchangeable guy. He was brought in to be elite.
Between missed field goals and missed extra points, the Bucs left a lot of points on the field last season. On top of that, with the new touchback rules, Aguayo has the ability to kick these precision rainbow shots on kickoffs, forcing teams to return while allowing his teammates to get down the field and create awful field position for the opposing offense. Field position is a game changer and having a kicker that can put the defense in a position to stifle the opposition inside their own twenty is a major asset.
Things can’t get much worse for the Bucs’ special teams than it was last year. Agauyo will ensure that.
Roberto Aguayo Field Goal Percentage: Over/Under 91.5%
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So there you have it Bucs fans! The Pewter Plank’s over/under of 2016. How do you think these Buccaneers will fare on the expectations we’ve set for them? Give us your thoughts – and your over/under picks – in the comments below, on Facebook, or on Twitter!