MSS– According to Kyle Shanahan, De’Vondre Campbell, who resigned on Thursday, will no longer play for the 49ers.
Following Thursday night’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers, it was evident that De’Vondre Campbell would no longer be allowed in the locker room.
Campbell, a nine-year NFL veteran and starting linebacker for the 49ers for the majority of this season, declined to enter a game against the Rams in the second half. When head coach Kyle Shanahan questioned Campbell about it, Shanahan claimed that Campbell stated “he didn’t want to play today.” Then Campbell disappeared inside the locker room from the sidelines.
NFL teams may tolerate a lot, but one of the few things that is usually not acceptable is leaving a game in the middle of play. Campbell will not play for San Francisco again, Shanahan stated on Friday.
What Campbell did was “not something you can do and still be a part of our team,” Shanahan told reporters on Friday, according to ESPN’s Nick Wagoner.
That shouldn’t be shocking. According to Shanahan, since Thursday evening, the team has not communicated with Campbell. Campbell won’t be on the team in Week 16, he confirmed.
It’s unclear what Campbell and the 49ers will do next. He might get suspended. Diontae Johnson, a receiver for the Baltimore Ravens, was suspended for a Week 14 game after he declined to play the previous week. Campbell would be free to join with another club for the remainder of the season if the 49ers cut him, and it doesn’t appear that San Francisco is in the mood to assist Campbell in finding another team.
The team is “working through the semantics” of what will happen with Campbell next, according to Shanahan.
Players rarely decline to enter a game when asked to do so, and it is far less common for them to abandon their team in the middle of a match. At halftime of a game in 2018, cornerback Vontae Davis announced his retirement to the Buffalo Bills and departed. When Antonio Brown left the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the middle of a game near the end of the 2021 season, he removed his jersey and pads and danced around the end zone. Campbell is now on that strange list.
Dre Greenlaw returned to the lineup Thursday, effectively benching Campbell. The squad wanted Campbell to in after Greenlaw was injured in the second half. At that point, he declined and departed. Following the game, a number of Campbell’s teammates chastised him for his behavior. George Kittle, a tight end, described it as “immature” and “stupid.”
The fact that Campbell will not return is not surprising. However, it would be intriguing to see him play against his teammates again after what transpired on Thursday night.
After spending four years in Atlanta, including one with the Arizona Cardinals, Campbell enjoyed three successful seasons with the Packers, including his greatest NFL campaign. With 146 tackles, two interceptions, and two sacks in 2021, Campbell was selected to the first team All-Pro.
According to Spotrac, he signed a $5 million one-year contract with the 49ers this past offseason, increasing his career earnings to $39.1 million. Campbell had 79 tackles and started 12 of the 49ers’ first 13 games.
Despite becoming a first-team All-Pro, starting 122 of 128 games, earning over $40 million in pay, and being nominated for a coveted off-field honor, Campbell will most likely be remembered for what transpired on Thursday night.
