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The San Francisco 49ers suspended De’Vondre Campbell three games after the linebacker refused to enter the game against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, likely ending his time with the team.
Kyle Shanahan said that he thought highly of Campbell after spending time together with the Atlanta Falcons, but ultimately wishes he hadn’t brought Campbell to San Francisco this offseason.
“I was with De’Vondre his rookie year in Atlanta, so I knew what he was capable of,” Shanahan said, per Pro Football Talk’s Michael David Smith. “Not that I was real close with the defensive guys, being the offensive coordinator there, but I know we liked him in that building. I know a lot of guys who have coached him who have been good. And we obviously made a mistake. It’s not something that we didn’t look into. We look into everything. You weigh the risk-reward of stuff. You weigh the situation that you have and what decision you can make in terms of the options. By no means was it our first option. But at the time, with what went down, we thought it was our best option. And it didn’t work out.”
The 49ers signed Campbell to a one-year, $5 million deal in March, shortly after his release from the Green Bay Packers. Following his Packers’ release, Campbell spoke out about his issues with the team on social media, which Shanahan said the 49ers addressed before signing him.
Ultimately, San Francisco needed a new linebacker after Dre Greenlaw tore his Achilles in the Super Bowl.
“We look into all that. It was tough losing Dre,” Shanahan said. “We knew we were going to need a starting-caliber linebacker. We had two guys that we thought we had committed that we lost in free agency. Then another guy got cut after that and became available.”
Campbell had a productive season until Thursday’s refusal to enter the game. He was the Niners’ second-leading tackler with 79 on the year and had two passes defended. While it was far from his All-Pro season in 2021 when he recorded 146 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles and two interceptions, it was more than enough to make him a reliable option for San Francisco.
Now the 49ers are down a linebacker for the remainder of the season, though their year is likely coming to an end soon as their playoff chances dwindle. San Francisco will face the Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions and Arizona Cardinals to close out the regular season, all must-wins to reach the postseason.