Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 15 greatest pass rushers in franchise history

Perfect timing is the best way to describe Greg Spires joining the Buccaneers. He came to Tampa as a free agent after the 2001 NFL season. As mentioned a few times already, the ensuing year was when Tampa Bay went on to become Super Bowl champions.

After being part of the New England Patriots and the Cleveland Browns during the first four seasons of his career, Spires would enjoy his time with the Buccaneers from 2002 to 2007 before the team decided to release the defensive end during the 2008 offseason.

Little did Spires know, that 2007 NFL season would end up being his final year of action in the NFL. Things failed to work out with him and the Oakland Raiders the following year, but at least the Buccaneers will always appreciate the time he spent on their defense.

Watching Spires end up with 26 sacks over his six seasons in Tampa Bay makes fans wonder how different things could have been if he had joined the Buccaneers earlier in his career, but better late than never, right?

Looking back at his time in Tampa Bay, the 2004 campaign in which Spires recorded eight sacks shows how much of a nightmare he was for opposing quarterbacks. It should also be noted that he forced three fumbles that season as well.

Once again, Spires is another example of just how much talent the Buccaneers’ defense was loaded with during that Super Bowl run from the 2002 NFL season. In a way, it’s a shame the team failed to earn an extra title with the squad, because they were that good of a unit.