The San Diego Chargers made a major personnel move on Thursday, releasing two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Takeo Spikes from the roster to create more cap space.
According to ESPN.com, the team announced the news about Spikes on Thursday and the linebacker confirmed the release on Twitter. The 36-year-old linebacker has played for 15 seasons, including the last two years with the Chargers.
"Thank you to the @chargers, Spanos family & fans for the opportunity to represent the organization. I look forward to this upcoming season," he wrote.
Spikes said he plans to play in the NFL next season with another team and he is hoping it will be a playoff one, as he has never been to the postseason in his 15-year career. He has played for Cincinnati, Buffalo, Philadelphia and San Francisco over the years, missing the playoffs each time.
Last season he had 78 tackles and provided a veteran and consistent presence for the Chargers on defense. In 219 career games has registered 1,423 tackles, 29 sacks, 19 interceptions and 15 forced fumbles, according to the AP.
"Takeo is a true professional and a class act," general manager Tom Telesco said in a statement. "We're grateful for his many contributions to the Chargers organization, both on and off the field, and wish him nothing but the best in the future."
The Chargers are currently under a completely new regime, as head coach Norv Turner and general manager AJ Smith were dismissed after the season. The Chargers went just 7-9 and missed the playoffs for the third straight year.
The team was solid on defense, ranking 18th in the NFL in passing yards allowed and sixth in the league in rushing yards allowed per game with 96. Spikes has been a very durable throughout his career, never playing in less than 14 games apart from two seasons, in which he played 3 and 12 games after dealing with injuries.
Spikes played in all 16 games in four of the past five seasons and he could be an interesting pickup for a team like the Dolphins or Bears.
The Chargers are in a slight rebuilding mode and the draft is a prime time for the team to start adding talent and two of their biggest targets could be Lane Johnson or Eric Fisher. The team could look at Fisher after ranking 27th in rushing yards and watching Philip Rivers get beat up all last season, as Fisher is one of the top linemen in the draft.
Johnson could also be an intriguing pick, as he is another highly-regarded lineman out of Oklahoma, where he blocked for Landry Jones, a similar quarterback to Rivers. Johnson is considered a very athletic lineman and he had an excellent showing at the NFL combine and could be the 11th pick in the first round for the Chargers.
