SANTA CLARA, Calif. — San Francisco 49ers linebacker De’Vondre Campbell refused to enter Thursday night’s NFL game against the Los Angeles Rams when fellow linebacker Dre Greenlaw was injured during the third quarter, a move that drew criticism from his teammates.
Campbell, 31, who had started 12 of the 49ers’ games this season before being benched in favor of Greenlaw for Thursday’s game, walked off the field at the end of the third quarter, Sports Illustrated reported.
Greenlaw suffered an Achilles injury during Super Bowl LVIII in February and was making his first start in 10 months. He left Thursday’s game after suffering some soreness in his knee.
The 49ers (6-8) lost 12-6 to the Rams, severely damaging the team’s postseason hopes.
Campbell signed a one-year, $5 million deal in the offseason with San Francisco after being cut by Green Bay in March, The Associated Press reported.
“He said he didn’t want to play today,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said about Campbell after the game. The coach added that he had never seen a player leave mid-game during his coaching career and said the team would “figure out something.”
Kyle Shanahan's comments on De'Vondre Campbell not wanting to play:
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) December 13, 2024
"That's somebody who doesn't want to play football. It's pretty simple. I think our team and myself I know how we feel about that, so. I don't think we need to talk about him anymore." pic.twitter.com/bS8FhQAqWU
In the team’s first 13 games, Campbell played 90% of San Francisco’s defensive snaps with 79 tackles, including three for loss, and defended two passes, ESPN reported.
Campbell has not commented about his decision.
After Campbell refused to enter the game, San Francisco inserted Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, the team’s only healthy linebacker left on the roster, into the game, ESPN reported. When the third quarter ended, Campbell walked to the locker room.
“People noticed (that), but when someone says that, you move on,” Shanahan said. “That’s somebody who doesn’t want to play football. That’s pretty simple. I think our team and myself, we know how we feel about that, so we don’t need to talk about him anymore.”
Campbell’s teammates did not mince words after the nationally televised game.
“Look, if you’re on the roster and you suit up, you’re expected to play,” 49ers tight end George Kittle told reporters. “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.”
George Kittle on De'Vondre Campbell refusing to go into the game:
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) December 13, 2024
“I've never been around anybody that's ever done that, and I hope I'm never around anyone that does that again.” pic.twitter.com/YAzgstVXej
“He’s a professional,” cornerback Charvarius Ward said. “He’s been playing for a long time. If he didn’t want to play he shouldn’t have dressed out. He could have told them that before the game. I feel like that was some selfish (expletive) that he did. It definitely hurt the team. Dre went down and we needed a linebacker.
“For him to do that, that’s some selfish (stuff) to me in my opinion. He’s probably going get cut soon.”
Greenlaw said he was 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 I guess,” Greenlaw said. “He ain’t want to play.”
“I don’t even want to comment on it that much,” linebacker Fred Warner said. “I’ll keep it in-house.”
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