Chicago Bears: Roberto Aguayo is worth a shot
By David Mamola
The Chicago Bears are hoping that a change of scenery will allow kicker Roberto Aguayo to revert back to his college form.
The Chicago Bears all of a sudden have an intense competition for a starting spot, but it’s not the position most fans want to see. With the waiver claim of former Tampa Bay Buccaneer Roberto Aguayo, the Bears have created a competition at the kicker position.
We all know the story with Aguayo — a highly successful collegiate kicker at Florida State and one of the biggest draft busts in recent years. Taken in the second round of the 2016 draft (the Bucs actually traded up to get him), Aguayo failed miserably in his rookie season and was cut after a shaky preseason performance in Week 1.
Connor Barth, the incumbent for Chicago, was so-so last year. Filling the shoes of Robbie Gould was tough, and Barth got off to a poor start last season. Despite finishing the season relatively strong, Barth faced competition prior in training camp from rookie Andy Phillips, but Phillips was eventually cut earlier last week.
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Barth does not have the strongest leg in the world, as he is known more for his accuracy within 40 yards. His kickoffs were just average last season, and even though it’s still early, he hasn’t seem to improved much this year.
The Bears do inherit the rest of Aguayo’s rookie contract, a deal that still has three years and some guaranteed money left. However, the team is still well below the salary cap for this season, so money really isn’t the big obstacle here.
The biggest hurdle the Bears and special teams coach Jeff Rodgers has to clear is trying to get Aguayo’s confidence back. After missing nine field goal attempts a year ago, Aguayo’s confidence is low. Kickers are much like golfers — if their confidence falters, their level of play will decrease.
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The Bucs clearly saw something in Aguayo to pick him 59th overall last year, and most NFL draft pundits felt that he was the best kicker to come out of college in years. The Bucs made a mistake taking a kicker in the second round, but Aguayo still has some talent and may benefit from a change of scenery.
In his eyes, this can be seen as a “fresh start.” Here’s hoping the Bears find treasure in another’s team trash.