Bruce Arians Talks About Drafting A Kicker, Criticism And Competition
May 9th, 2019
The Buccaneers drafted a kicker, a kicker, early in Round 5 of 2019 NFL Draft.
Bucco Bruce Arians has answers and evaluations.
The new head coach was hit with the Matt Gay question, the new kicker out of the University of Utah.
Why Gay? Arians was asked on SiriusXM NFL Radio recently.
“Well, the distance, the strength of his leg, you know, from 58 in,” Arians said of his new weapon. “Cairo [Santos] has been very consistent 40 [yards] in. It’ll be a good battle. And I believe in competition breeds success. It’ll be a heck of a battle between those two guys. I mean, you get criticized for taking a kicker in the fifth-round until you line up with four seconds left and they make a 55-yarder to win a game. ‘Oh, what a great pick.'”
Arians talked about the value of kickers to great teams, singling out Jeff Reed in Pittsburgh, the kicker during Arians’ years with the Steelers. Reed was no Pro Bowler, and he had a couple of off seasons. However, he was 16-of-18 on field goals in the playoffs.
Of working with general manager Jason Licht on the Gay selection, Arians said, “We both couldn’t wait to get that pick in.”
Joe can’t wait to watch the kicker competition unfold.
May 9th, 2019 at 10:22 am
That 55-58 yarder in Utah will turn into a 40-45 yarder in Tampa.
I just don’t get why we draft players from the NW and expect them to perform similarly in the SE. I’m eager to see if Vea will play the first month of the season. Oh wait we’re away most of that time so hopefully that will help.
May 9th, 2019 at 10:32 am
Or when the K cannot make an extra point you will get biscuits thrown on you as you jog out of the den of depression
May 9th, 2019 at 10:32 am
Gay could have been had asan undrafted FA… that pick sucked
May 9th, 2019 at 10:34 am
1st month of the season 3 of 4 games are in the SE
May 9th, 2019 at 10:35 am
When Licht is finally fired he will never be a gm for an other nfl team again nor should he be. Hopefully he will find success in a different job.
May 9th, 2019 at 10:41 am
A coach should coach and a GM, for me, should get together, the best possible Talented Roster, for his HeadCoach
therefore i say: it is what it is..
Suckaneers suck because of the FrontOffice. they suck at talent evaluating and @ Roster building
join the Fire Licht Tonight movement !!
May 9th, 2019 at 10:41 am
DB55 is correct; kicking in SLC where the Utes play football is going to lead to some inflated stats since Salt Lake is at an elevation of 4200+ feet; almost as high as Mile High Denver. I simply do not get why any team wastes a draft pick on a kicker or punter like SF (4th round punter) , the Bucs and the Browns (5th round kickers) did this year when the guys they drafted could have been UDFA signings or perhaps 7th rounders if a team really wanted to bring a certain kicker in. A 5th round pick might just be a throw away pick, granted, but the Bucs need so much help at so many positions it just seems like they could have addressed another need….. You’d think a moratorium on drafting kickers would have been established at One Buc after the Aguayo disaster. Repeating the same error over and over again but expecting a better result is the definition of insanity so draw your own conclusions about the brain trust at One Buc….
May 9th, 2019 at 10:42 am
When he makes that 55 yarder to win a game I hope all the haters show and offer their apologies
May 9th, 2019 at 10:43 am
The “real” fans can’t wait until the press conference ole coach stale biscuit has at training camp when the “so-called” fans booo the kickers for missing field goals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Guess what sheep, the circus is not even here yet, but its coming to RJS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2019 will reveal answers to the sheep, that the “real” fans already know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 9th, 2019 at 10:45 am
I hope this kicker is straight cash 💰 💵 💷 💴
If not, that’s a 2nd round (traded a 3 and a 4) on Aguayo and a 5 on a kicker- with multiple questionable acquisitions.
May 9th, 2019 at 10:51 am
And now we are back to the days when every kick in practice will be reported!
I like the ideia but that it’s too 2016…
May 9th, 2019 at 10:56 am
hey hey hey I know how yo turn a franchise around, here is what you do.. LMAO, Oh man only the Yuccaneers, only the Yucs can do this… LETS hire a 67 yr old coach w heart and health issues to turn the Yuccaneers around and be out in 95 degree heat, lol…. Only the Yuccaneers…
May 9th, 2019 at 10:59 am
Point of reference
– 2017 Heart of Dallas Bowl (elevation 430ft) went 3 for 3 and one kickoff was measured at 65yds.
– 2018 4-for-4 in field goals against Stanford (elevation 95 ft) (49, 48, 37 and 34 yards) …
– 2018 45-of-45 in PATs (tied for the Pac-12 lead)
Accurate inside 40 in 2018 16 for 16 set the school record with 8 FG’s over 50yds.
Perhaps, having so many chances at 50 yds or more will provide him confidence for the 40yd kicks.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:02 am
I love how you want to compare the Bucs to other teams when it fits your narrative. Then criticize the Bucs in a vacuum to fit another narrative. Id rather select a KICKER than a PUNTER like the other teams did in the draft. You won’t het on Lynch for Drafting a Punter in the 4th? NE in the 5th, Browns drafting a Kicker in the 5th? Teams only have so many “Draftable” grades on Players. Wake the F up..
May 9th, 2019 at 11:04 am
DB55 Says:
May 9th, 2019 at 10:22 am
That 55-58 yarder in Utah will turn into a 40-45 yarder in Tampa.
I just don’t get why we draft players from the NW and expect them to perform similarly in the SE. I’m eager to see if Vea will play the first month of the season. Oh wait we’re away most of that time so hopefully that will help.
————-
Great point DB55.
I don’t think the Bucs should ignore players out west, but I think targeting players from the southeast (The SEC and ACC in particular) is a more prudent approach to drafting players that are going to be practicing, training and playing football in Tampa.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:05 am
Gaawwwdd I love having a HeadCoach that give two f$&@ about how you people feel. Soldier Salute Bruce Arians.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:06 am
Questions not ask? Why draft a kicker in the 5th rd. when he probably could have been had in the 7th or UFA. Also considering he wasn’t even the highest rated kicker in the draft. Of course FO & coaches BS the fans with all this crap. What happens if he hits a 55yd FG to win a game with 4 sec. remaining. But on the other hand what if he misses the same FG. Then what do BA & Licht say. Oh the sun was in his eyes or bad snap or it was the holders fault. Why not say the truth & admit they fudd up.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:06 am
R.O keep in mind my G this lameville.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:07 am
@youKnowhoYouare
Licht made it a point of emphasis by saying that Gay can hit the long ones at sea level and at altitude. Don’t take his word for it after all there is no Scouting Department! Jason does it all by himself.
Take some time and research Matt Gay yourselves. You can find plenty of other info about him on the Internet if you try.
______________________
Culture Change, Team=>Fans
Go Bucs!!!!! Win Now!
May 9th, 2019 at 11:09 am
I’m rooting for Matt to be the most successful place kicker in NFL history!!! However I am still against the drafting of kickers in any round before mid to late 7th!!! Especially one that has documented Depression issues!!! Hello!!
May 9th, 2019 at 11:15 am
What Sport said!
Here is some info for ya!
______________________
Culture Change, Team=>Fans
Go Bucs!!!!! Win Now!
May 9th, 2019 at 11:15 am
Bruce is correct. IF this kids comes in, wins the job, makes makeable kicks during the season and nails a game winner or two, no one will look back and question what round he was taken in. That’s one heck of an IF in these parts, though 😉
May 9th, 2019 at 11:27 am
The Buc Realist Says:
June 21st, 2018 at 6:48 pm
Huge pass to the coaching staff issued by the “real” Buc fans!!!!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!!!!!!
****************************************************************
say no more!!!!!!!!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
May 9th, 2019 at 11:28 am
Hope this new kicker works out favorably, if not call em the Tampa Bay kick in the rears.
May 9th, 2019 at 11:49 am
He didn’t play every game in Utah, college teams actually have away games too but nice try fake gm’s
May 9th, 2019 at 11:56 am
Drafting a kicker still does not make any sense, or value!!!!!!! But at least now 813bucboi knows what jersey to get!!!!!! Even heard that he wants every color that it will come in ( since it does not come in rainbow)!!!!! By now it all makes since from all those old comments he would say about want to see men in skirts and dresses!!!!!!!!!!!!
2019 will reveal answers to the sheep, that the “real” fans already know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 9th, 2019 at 11:58 am
A good kicker is underrated. Let’s hope we solved this problem with this draft.
May 9th, 2019 at 12:22 pm
With no real pass rush at this point FG’S mean nothing when we’ll need touchdowns just to keep up. 🙁 …so depressing
May 9th, 2019 at 12:31 pm
Our kickers have f’d us so hard for the past few years that I am amazed that people are so critical of taking one in the fifth round. If he solves our kicking woes, the whole team will benefit mentally from the confidence. Second round was stupid. Fifth is not. John Dorsey of the Browns, arguably the best GM in the NFL took one in the same round! So to say he could have been had as an UFA is bullspit speculation. Cleveland may have taken him had he been there. As far as the altitude issue, dude also made a ton of kicks in cold and snow. If we had a reliable kicker we would have beaten New England on Thursday night in 2017. Until proven otherwise, BA knows what he’s doing and has proven it EVERYWHERE he has coached!! Go Bucs!!
May 9th, 2019 at 1:29 pm
realist
i have a winston and evans jersey…..
i left both in your moms room!!!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
May 9th, 2019 at 1:43 pm
BA is protecting Gump, Happy Gilmour said after he was drafted in the 5th round that he was surprised. He never spoke to BA or Gump. He only spoke to an intern over the phone. The intern’s job is to call everyone on the draft board to make sure they are still alive and not in prison.
Happy may be able to kick 55 yard FG’s in a crap division with a 4 step running approach but that won’t fly in the NFL. That was his biggest problem last year, blocked kicks.
Asked about wether he can kick off, he said he’s been working on it, but doesn’t believe so. So here’s a kid that needs a running start to kick a field goal but can’t reach the goal line on a kick off with a running start.
Nobody has consulted his psychiatrist about a little problem, where he can’t get out of bed if his depression gets too bad.
I think BA will live to regret those words, “We both couldn’t wait to get that pick in.”
May 9th, 2019 at 1:48 pm
I remember a game when the Bucs beat xxx* 15-0 in a defensive struggle on the leg of Martin “Automatica” Gramatica.
Let me see now. The year must have been yyy*
______________________
Culture Change, Team=>Fans
Go Bucs!!!!! Win Now!
* Yes, I do know what team and what year that was. Hint: Our starting QB was out with an injury. … Even if I didn’t know it would be easy enough to find out on with a Google search.
May 9th, 2019 at 2:02 pm
For all of those assuming Gay would be an UDFA…….what makes you think we would have been able to sign him…..there are 31 other teams…..he could go where he wished.
Now, could we have waited until the 6th or 7th round……maybe…..the key word here is maybe.
May 9th, 2019 at 2:14 pm
I don’t like the kicker pick but I do like how Arians rolls. He’s at an age where he could care less what anyone thinks.
Good for him.
Go bucs.
May 9th, 2019 at 2:23 pm
I like this kicker but even he didn’t expect to be drafted until late 6 to FA. I’d like to know if they had some intel that some other team was about to draft him. Otherwise why draft him so at 5 when he could have been gotten later in the draft.
May 9th, 2019 at 2:40 pm
Good kicker or not he will be the least sold buccaneers jersey in history lol
May 9th, 2019 at 2:52 pm
We go 5-11 with either kicker
You have to draft well to win in the nfl and recruit well in college.
Nick has had 9 out of 10 numbers 1 recruiting classes
And how has he done?
Can’t win without talent
We have 5-11 talent
May 9th, 2019 at 6:16 pm
Get Chris Baker back here to shout insults at the kickers as they practice!
May 9th, 2019 at 7:59 pm
Eric Says:
May 9th, 2019 at 2:14 pm
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Just one of the perks from having attained that state know as geezerhood! It is an enlightenment that can occur at a stage in life for anyone who lives long enough. There is no exact age when it may come. :-J