Guess Who Just Got In The Market For A Defensive End

The Buccaneers released both Greg Spires and Kevin Carter yesterday, adding about $9 million in cap space for 2008 while simultaneously lowering the average age on the team by about five years.

Spires I get. Although he is still a servicable end, his time had really passed at the end of 2006. He missed a good chunk of time with an injury and doesn't have the same motor he did in 2002-2003. But Carter surprises me. With guys like Gaines Adams and Greg White and Jovan Haye, you really need an older, experienced player in there. His leadership on the line was said to be outstanding. Who do those guys turn to now? Chris Hovan? He's a fantastic player and a team-first guy, but he's also kind of the lead-by-example type and not the wise, old veteran that the situation calls for.

When I first heard the story, there wasn't much information about it. The linked story does have this bit, though:

Carter, 34, is expected to sign a new contract and return.

As usual, they don't say if that's the team's expectation or the reporter's expectation. I suspect the latter. Which would make this sentence a little more ominous:

Carter, a 13-year veteran out of Florida, declined comment.

No "I appreciate them releasing me before free agency started." No "I expect to be back." No "It was a good season." Nothing? Carter isn't the kind of guy to tell a team to go fuck themselves if he's mad at them, so his intentional silence could be a bad sign.

The good news behind all this is that the Bucs have over $44 million of cap room now. The team already had enough cap room to pull in as many second-tier guys as they wanted, so I'm pretty sure this extra room was made to bring in a superstar. Now they could make a play for Justin Smith or Asante Samuel or both if they really wanted to. I'll rule Lance Briggs out since Derrick Brooks is still on the team. Are there any offensive free agents that warrant that kind of money? Randy Moss, of course, but there's no reason to think he'd leave New England. Alan Faneca? To be a center? And if they were to keep him at guard, do they try to move Arron Sears to center? That seems like a waste either way. And with Michael Bennett and Earnest Graham on the roster, I don't see them blowing their wad on Michael Turner, who I'm still not convinced is an every down back. No, it seems like the big splash is going to be made on defense. And since they just released two defensive ends and have a real need to improve their pass rush, I'll say they snag Smith.