Bucs GM: Choosing Brindza over Barth was a mistake
Connor Barth made all three of his field-goal tries and three extra points against the Jaguars. JASON BEHNKEN/STAFF By Roy Cummings | Tribune Staff Published: October 16, 2015TAMPA — Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht says he made a mistake letting go of kicker Connor Barth prior to the start of the season.“In hindsight, I shouldn’t have let him go,” Licht said earlier this week on SiriusXM NFL Radio’s “The Blitz.’’Barth was first brought back to Tampa to compete for the Bucs kicker’s job after he was released by the Broncos in late August, but he was let go again during the team’s final roster cutdown.The Bucs opted at that time to go with rookie Kyle Brindza, but Brindza struggled with his field goal kicking, missing five of his last six and two of his last four point-after tries.That led to the release of Brindza, who had been obtained in a trade with the Lions late in the preseason, and the re-signing of Barth, who paid immediate dividends after joining the team again last week.During the Bucs’ 38-31 victory over Jacksonville on Sunday, the Bucs’ all-time leader in field-goal percentage (84.3-percent) made all three of his field-goal tries and three extra points.Barth also recorded five touchbacks on eight kickoffs during the victory over the Jaguars and drove all eight of his kicks into the end zone. That came as a bit of a surprise, Licht said.“(Barth) has always been a steady kicker, but his kickoff leg has always been inconsistent, to put it mildly,’’ Licht said. “But then he comes in here last week and kicks five out of eight out of the back of the end zone. I think one went into the stands. I asked him where that came from and he said he had been working on it. So, he changed up his technique a little bit, but I think he realized that was his best chance to stick around for a long time.’’[email protected]Twitter: @RCummingsTBO