On Sunday, we wrote about how Tampa Bay Buccaneers GM Jason Licht adamantly defended the decision to trade up for kicker Roberto Aguayo in the second round because of what he learned from Bill Belichick in New England. Now, Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher is not mincing words when he says that the pick was absolutely genius by the Bucs and helped them fill an obvious need.

Here are Fishers full comments on the Buccaneers decision to trade back up and nab Aguayo in the second round.

“Tell me what a guard or a tackle’s going to do more than a kicker does in critical situations, they’re all just as critical. … When a puzzle’s put together, if one piece is missing, it’s still empty. When you can get the best kicker you’ve seen and one of the best in the history of the NCAA, why would you not?” “Really they didn’t lose anything, to me, it was genius. It was pretty smart, what their GM and them did. Got a piece of the puzzle which they needed. “I’ll say this, most people who said that it wasn’t a smart pick ain’t ever coached. Maybe that’s including scouts. They ain’t never been on that sideline.”

Jimbo Fisher strikes a really good point, kickers are absolutely critical in the NFL and their impact can be the difference in a team being great or a team being average. The Bucs took a chance on perhaps the best collegiate kicker ever, and now it’s going to be up to Aguayo to prove he was worth the pick. Stats are definitely in Aguayo’s favor as he finished his college career hitting 88.5% of his FGs (69-78) and 100% of his extra points (198-198). He also set the single season record for total points by a kicker with 157 in 2013. He had 405 total points which was only 61 points behind another former FSU kicker, Dustin Hopkins, for the most points by a kicker ever. He surely would’ve broken that record if he had decided to stay at Florida State for his senior year. Aguayo was also kicking 100% from inside the NFL hash marks, which is something that can instantly translate to this level of football.

It’s also a little humorous that Fisher recognized what most of the national media and talking heads still aren’t getting through their thick skulls, the Bucs trade back into the second round cost them practically nothing. During the first round of the draft the Bucs traded the #9 pick to Chicago and in exchange they received the #11 pick and the Bears 2016 4th round pick. Tampa Bay then nabbed Vernon Hargreaves with the 11th pick, and Noah Spence in the second round before packaging the fourth round pick they received in the trade and their own third round pick to move back into the second round.

So essentially, the Bucs decided they needed to grab Aguayo before the third round because they expected someone in front of them to nab him first. Regardless, it’s not about the Bucs needing the media’s approval, they got their man and now it’s time for Roberto Aguayo to prove himself in Tampa.