Buccaneers Release Chris Simms, Decide to Only Carry 4 Quarterbacks

The Chris Simms era (if you want to call it that) in Tampa Bay has officially come to an end as the Buccaneers released the sixth-year veteran, as reported by Rick Stroud at the St. Petersburg Times.

Simms hasn't thrown a pass in a regular season game since week three of the 2006 season when he suffered a ruptured spleen.

As Stroud reports, Simms had been trying to convince Tampa Bay management to let him go throughout training camp, only to be refused due to the teams desire to seemingly carry as many quarterbacks as humanly possible at a given time (Actually, they were just hoping to trade him). The Buccaneers will enter the 2008 season with Jeff Garcia, Brian Griese, Luke McCown and Josh Johnson on their roster, one of the few teams in the NFL to carry four quarterbacks.

So, where does Simms go from here?

According to Stroud, there are at least two teams that could have an interest in the 28-year old former third-round pick.

The Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers are expected to have the most interest in signing Simms, who becomes a free agent.
The Cowboys' backup quarterback is 40-year-old Brad Johnson, Simms' teammate with the Bucs. The Packers have no experienced quarterback behind starter Aaron Rodgers.

There is also some speculation the Chicago Bears could have interest.

Simms played in 20 games for Tampa Bay, including a 17-10 loss to the Washington Redskins in the wild card round of the 2005 playoffs. He threw 12 touchdowns and completed 59% of his passes as a member of the Buccaneers.

Among the other notable cuts for Tampa Bay were veteran linebacker Ryan Nece, and this years fourth-round pick Dre Moore, a defensive tackle from Maryland.