FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots signed veteran free agent DE Andre Carter. Terms of the contract were not announced.
In addition, the Patriots signed DT Sealver Siliga to the practice squad and released CB Travis Howard from the practice squad.
Carter, 34, was with the Patriots during the 2011 season and earned his first Pro Bowl selection after registering double-digit sacks (10.0) for the fourth time in his career. He played in 14 games and finished with 59 total tackles, 10.0 sacks and two forced fumbles before being placed on injured reserve. The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder is a veteran of 12 NFL seasons with the San Francisco 49ers (2001-05), Washington Redskins (2006-10), Patriots in 2011 and the Oakland Raiders in 2012. Carter was released by Oakland on Aug. 31, 2013.
Carter originally entered the NFL as a first-round draft pick (7th overall) of the 49ers in 2001 out of California. He was signed by Washington as an unrestricted free agent on March 15, 2006. Carter was signed by the Patriots as a free agent on Aug. 8, 2011. He was signed by Oakland on Sept. 26, 2012, and played in 12 games last season and finished with 13 total tackles and 2½ sacks.
Carter has played in 175 career games with 147 starts and has accumulated 517 total tackles, 66 sacks, 30 passes defensed, 15 forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries. He has registered double-digit sack totals three times in his career with a career-high 12½ in 2002 with the 49ers and 10½ in 2007 and 11.0 in 2009 with the Redskins.
Siligia, 23, has spent time with San Francisco, Denver and Seattle since joining the NFL as a rookie free agent with the 49ers in 2011 out of Utah. The 6-foot-2, 325-pounder, was released by the 49ers at the end of his first training camp and was then signed to the Denver practice squad. He began the 2012 season on the Denver practice squad before being signed to the 53-man roster in September. He played in one game for Denver in 2012. Siligia was traded by Denver to Seattle in training camp this past summer and spent part of the year on the Seahawks practice squad before being released on Oct. 4.
Howard, 23, joined the New England practice squad on Oct. 16. He was originally signed by the Houston Texans as a rookie free agent out of Ohio State on May 10, 2013. The 6-foot-1, 197-pounder, was released by Houston on Aug. 27, 2013. He started every game as a junior and senior at Ohio State and totaled 81 tackles, six interceptions and 11 passes defensed during that time.
