49ers’ De’Vondre Campbell refuses to play, quits TNF game in third quarter
Following their 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said linebacker De’Vondre Campbell Sr. told the team he didn’t want to play and he left the field in the third quarter of the “Thursday Night Football” matchup.
“He said he didn’t want to play today,” Shanahan said postgame, noting the team wanted him to replace Dre Greenlaw when the linebacker left the game in the third quarter with some soreness. Greenlaw was playing for the first time since tearing his Achilles in the Super Bowl and was expected to play limited snaps. Greenlaw replaced Campbell in the starting lineup.
Several of Campbell’s teammates were not happy with his decision.
“He’s a professional, he’s been playing for a long time. If he didn’t want to play, he shouldn’t have dressed out,” cornerback Charvarius Ward said. “He could’ve told ’em that before the game. So I feel like that was some sucker s— that he did. Definitely hurt the team, ’cause Dee (Winters) went down and we needed a linebacker. And I think (Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles) was banged up too, so for him to do that, that’s some sucker stuff to me, in my opinion. He’s probably going to get cut soon.”
Greenlaw, who said his Achilles felt fine after his season debut but felt some knee soreness, seemed surprised by Campbell’s decision.
“He didn’t want to play so I guess if you don’t want to play, you ain’t got to play,” Greenlaw said. “He ain’t want to play.”
Kyle Shanahan revealed that De’Vondre Campbell didnt want to play in the 3rd quarter.
The TNF crew share their thoughts on the situation. pic.twitter.com/8lcK1tkGTT
— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) December 13, 2024
Tight end George Kittle didn’t know what happened with Campbell until after the game and was upset by the move.
“Look, if you’re on the roster and you suit up, you’re expected to play,” Kittle said. “I think anyone in this building that got asked to go in, I would say 100 percent of everybody would die to get on that football field. And so, you know, people go through random things off the field. I can’t speak on that. Whatever his decision was, it wasn’t for this organization, it wasn’t for this team. And that’s on him. I’m not very happy about it.
“I wish I would’ve heard about it on the field, but I didn’t. Now, is that the reason we lost? Absolutely not. But it’s hard to win football games when somebody doesn’t want to play football, especially when you’re suited up.”
Shanahan said Campbell did not give him a reason for why he didn’t want to play. Asked if the 49ers would release Campbell, Shanahan said: “We’ll figure out something. I don’t know that right now.”
The eighth-year coach insisted that Campbell’s quitting on the team wasn’t a reflection of any concern he’s lost the locker room.
“I haven’t lost anybody,” Shanahan said. “If somebody doesn’t want to play football, that’s pretty simple. I think our team and myself, we know how we feel about that. I don’t think we need to talk about him anymore.”
Campbell signed with the 49ers in the offseason after spending the past three seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He’s tallied 79 total tackles in 13 games (12 starts) this season.
Required reading
(Photo: Kevin Sabitus / Getty Images)