Tampa Bay Buccaneers kicker Roberto Aguayo found kicking pretty simple in college. However, the rookie is having a rough time of it in the NFL so far, and he’s trying to take corrective measures.
Aguayo, who famously never missed an extra point or a field goal from inside 40 yards while at Florida State, has already missed two field goals and an extra point in the first two preseason games. In response, he has reached out to former NFL kicker Ryan Longwell and former Buccaneers special teams coordinator Billy Miller to help him with his mechanics. He has also contacted a mental coach, admitting that his confidence has been shaken slightly by the misses.
“I’m just focusing on relaxing and sometimes not thinking about it too much,” Aguayo said, via Roy Cummings of 620 WDAE in Tampa. “When you’re overthinking like, ‘OK, I have to do this and this and this,’ you get too many thoughts in your head. Sometimes you have to sit back and relax and just kick it. That’s the mindset going into practice and throughout this week.”
The Bucs have been rotating holders on Aguayo’s kicks, but he denied that it was a factor in his misses.
“No, that doesn’t have anything to do with the timing,” Aguayo said. “Those guys are both getting the work in. Like I said, the holders – [Jacob] Schum and [Bryan] Anger – have both been doing a great job holding for me. They get the ball down. I just tell them, ‘As long as you get the ball down I have to find a way to get it in.'”
Kicking in the NFL is a whole different animal than kicking in college, and Aguayo got something of a taste of that at Florida State’s pro day, too. Given his track record of success and how proactive he is at correcting his mistakes, it seems like a decent bet that he’ll shake off whatever mental or physical hindrances he may be dealing with.
H/T ProFootballTalk
