No. 94, 96 | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Defensive end | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Marianna, Florida, U.S. | August 12, 1974||||||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 265 lb (120 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Mariner (FL) | ||||||
College: | Florida State | ||||||
NFL Draft: | 1998 / Round: 3 / Pick: 83 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||
| |||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||
| |||||||
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
Gregory Tyrone Spires (born August 12, 1974) is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida State.
Spires was also a member for the Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Oakland Raiders. He earned a Super Bowl ring with the Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII.
Greg Spires played college football at Florida State University as a Seminole. He was a four-year letterman from 1994-1998. His NFL Draft status dropped to the third round as a result of a cracked fibula entering the end of his junior year. It carried through to three games of his senior season. Also, Spires did not start in his junior season. Throughout his college career, he played the positions of linebacker, nose guard, and defensive end. Greg Spires was redshirted in 1993.
After being drafted by the New England Patriots (3rd round, 83rd selection overall), Spires played in 15 games including the playoff appearance that the Patriots had. [1] He recorded two sacks against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the postseason. During the 1999 season, he played 11 games until he suffered a hip injury against the Buffalo Bills on November 28, 1999 and eventually was placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the 1999 season. In 2000, Greg Spires had a great year. He played in all 16 games, and started two of them. Spires recorded a career high 6 sacks and tied Willie McGinest for the team lead. Spires also forced three fumbles. He was re-signed by the Patriots on April 30, 2001. Because of team issues, Greg Spires was released by the Patriots towards the start of the 2001 season, on September 3, 2001. He was claimed and signed by the Cleveland Browns the very next day.
Greg Spires' career with the Cleveland Browns was short-lived. Despite being there for just one season, Spires played in all 16 games and started 4. He recorded four sacks that season.
Greg Spires became an unrestricted free agent after the 2001 season and was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Spires found a place with the Bucs and was their perennial starter at left defensive end from 2002 to 2007. He came at just the right time, as the Bucs sailed through the playoffs and won Super Bowl XXXVII against the Oakland Raiders. He totaled 47 tackles, 3.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one pass defended lining up opposite right defensive end Simeon Rice. Because of the chemistry of this defense, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers became the best pass defense and best overall defense in the NFL. He played on one of the top-tier defenses in 2003, 2004, and 2005 (where they finished first again). Spires helped the Buccaneers to the playoffs, but they lost in the Wild Card round to the Washington Redskins. On February 27, 2008, the Buccaneers released him.
On May 10, 2008, he signed with the Oakland Raiders. He was later released on August 25, 2008.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The club joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team, along with the Seattle Seahawks, and played its first season in the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Prior to the 1977 season, Tampa Bay switched conferences and divisions with Seattle, becoming a member of the NFC Central division. As a result of the league's realignment prior to the 2002 season, the Buccaneers joined three former NFC West teams to form the NFC South. The club is owned by the Glazer family and plays its home games at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Oakland Raiders and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2002 season. The Buccaneers defeated the Raiders by the score of 48–21, tied with Super Bowl XXXV for the seventh largest Super Bowl margin of victory, winning their first-ever Super Bowl. The game was played on January 26, 2003, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California.
Jon David Gruden is an American professional football coach who is a consultant for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He held his first head coaching position with the Raiders franchise during their Oakland tenure from 1998 to 2001, where he won two consecutive division titles and made an AFC Championship Game appearance. Gruden was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002, which he led to their first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXVII the same season. At age 39, he was the then-youngest head coach to win the Super Bowl. He served as Tampa Bay's head coach through 2008, setting the franchise record for wins, but made only two further playoff runs. After his firing from the Buccaneers, Gruden was featured as an analyst for ESPN's Monday Night Football broadcasts from the 2009 to the 2017 seasons.
Simeon James Rice is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals third overall in the 1996 NFL Draft.
Jamael Orondé "Rondé" Barber is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 16-year career as a cornerback with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He is the identical twin brother of Tiki Barber, a former running back for the New York Giants. Barber grew up in Roanoke, Virginia and played college football for the University of Virginia.
Derrick Dewan Brooks is an American former professional football player who was an outside linebacker for his entire 14-year career in the National Football League (NFL) with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brooks played college football at Florida State, where he twice received consensus All-American honors, and was selected by the Buccaneers in the first round of the 1995 NFL Draft. An 11-time Pro Bowl selection and five-time first-team All-Pro, Brooks was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2002 en route to winning the franchise's first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXVII. Following his retirement, Brooks served as co-owner and president of the Tampa Bay Storm in the Arena Football League (AFL) from 2011 to 2017. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016.
Dexter Lamar Jackson is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 1999 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida State.
Christopher Lyle Cooper is a former American football defensive lineman in the National Football League for the Oakland Raiders, Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals. He also was a member of the California Redwoods in the United Football League. He played college football at Nebraska-Omaha.
Cosey Casey Coleman is a former American college and professional football player who was an offensive guard in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football for the University of Tennessee, was a member of a BCS National Championship team, and received consensus All-American honors. A second-round pick in the 2000 NFL Draft, Coleman played professionally for the Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.
John Terrence Lynch Jr. is an American professional football executive and former player who is the general manager of the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played in the NFL as a strong safety for 15 seasons, primarily with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A nine-time Pro Bowl selection, Lynch earned a Super Bowl ring with the Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021.
Kevin Louis Carter is an American former college and professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for fourteen seasons in the 1990s and 2000s. Carter played college football for the University of Florida, and received All-American honors. A first-round pick in the 1995 NFL Draft, he played professionally for the St. Louis Rams, Tennessee Titans, Miami Dolphins, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.
Ellis Rashad Wyms is a former American football defensive tackle. He was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the sixth round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Mississippi State.
Gerald Keith McCoy Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners, earning consensus All-American honors. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the third overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft. McCoy has been selected to the Pro Bowl six times, and was selected to one First-team All-Pro.
This article details the history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football franchise.
The 2002 season was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 27th in the National Football League (NFL). It was one of the most successful seasons in franchise history, ending with a victory in Super Bowl XXXVII.
Trevor John Scott is a former American football defensive end who played in the National Football Place (NFL). He played college football at Buffalo and was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft.
Robert Ayers is a former American football defensive end that played 10 years in the NFL. He played college football at Tennessee and was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He has also played for the New York Giants and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Lavonte Lamar David is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Since entering the NFL, David has been named to 3 All-Pro teams, 1 Pro Bowl appearance and won Super Bowl LV during the 2020 season, in a 31–9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
William Gholston is an American football defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State, and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft.
Shaquil Akeem Barrett is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Nebraska Omaha before transferring to Colorado State University, and was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2014. After five seasons with the Broncos, including winning Super Bowl 50, Barrett signed with the Buccaneers. His level of play increased, making the Pro Bowl and All-Pro teams in 2019 after leading the league in sacks, and in 2021 won Super Bowl LV.