The Facts: The Bucs are willing to lose the draft equity they have in Aguayo, and they demonstrated that by signing Jets free agent Nick Folk while guaranteeing him $750,000. It's still very early, with offseason workouts, training camp and preseason games to go in the kick-a-thon. But if the two practices that were open to the media last week are any indication, Aguayo might be the guy Hard Knocks cameras follow into the parking lot as he packs up whatever may be left of his career.

Diehards Line: Remember, Aguayo, 23, suffered through a disappointing rookie season, and the scrutiny reached the front offices in Tampa. GM Jason Licht was vilified for his decision to trade up into the second round to select the Florida State kicker. Then Aguayo did nothing to ease the pressure by making an NFL-worst 71 percent (22-of-31) of his field goals, with a long of only 43 yards. This past week, Aguayo made 1 of 4 field-goals Tuesday on the narrow goalposts (8½ feet wide instead of the regulation 18½ feet), then connected on 4 of 5 from 35-40 yards on the regulation-sized uprights Thursday. Meanwhile, the 32-year-old Folk was 9-for-9 from the same distance. This is not to suggest the Bucs won't give Aguayo every opportunity to restore their faith in his toe. The Raiders' Sebastian Janikowski, also out of FSU, was worse as a rookie, making 22 of 32 field goals (68.8 percent) in 2000. Seventeen years later he's a career 80.4 percent kicker. Still, this is a legitimate battle. "The competition has definitely started. I know everybody feels it," HC Dirk Koetter said. "There's a little tension when we're going through that. That's a good thing. That's a good thing. This is pro football, there's supposed to be competition." In this case, it's one you'll want to watch before investing in Tampa’s PK.