TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers released veteran defensive ends Kevin Carter and Greg Spires today.

Carter had 73 tackles, three sacks, a forced fumble and fumble recovery in his first season with the Buccaneers. He has played in every game during his 13-year NFL career with Tampa Bay, Miami, Tennessee and St. Louis.

The 34-year-old Carter, who has 100 1/2 career sacks, was a first-round pick out of Florida in 1995 by the Rams.

Spires, who joined the Buccaneers in 2002 as a free agent and helped them win their first Super Bowl that season, appeared in just 10 games last season, including eight starts. He had 26 tackles and two sacks.

Spires, 33, has 39› career sacks in 10 seasons with Tampa Bay, Cleveland and New England. He was a third-round pick of the Patriots out of Florida State in 1998.