During the third quarter of the LA Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers Thursday Night Football matchup, linebacker De'Vondre Campbell walked off the field.
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Following the game, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke on the incident and said he left the game because "he didn't want to play today."
Kyle Shanahan said LB De'Vondre Campbell left the game in the 3rd quarter because "he didn't want to play today" 😳
(via @49ers) pic.twitter.com/KbvNfkNoPI
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 13, 2024
When a reporter asked Shanahan about 'losing the locker room," he adamantly denied it and said this was an isolated case.
"I haven't lost anybody," Shanahan said. "That's somebody that doesn't want to play football, it's pretty simple. I think our team and myself we know how we feel about that, so I don't think we need to talk about him anymore."
Teammates of Campbell were outspoken when asked questions by reporters.
Tight end George Kittle said, "I've never been around anybody that's done that, and I hope I'm never around anyone that does that again."
George Kittle on De'Vondre Campbell refusing to go into the game:
“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
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) December 13, 2024
Then cornerback Charvarius Ward told reporters, that he thinks Campbell will be off the team.
"That's some sucker stuff to me... Probably gonna get cut soon."
#49ers Mooney Ward on De’Vondre Campbell leaving on the team:
“That’s some sucker stuff to me…Probably gonna get cut soon.”
🎥: @mattblively
— OurSF49ers (@OurSf49ers) December 13, 2024
During the postgame show, the broadcast crew shed some light as to why Campbell left the field.
Former 5x Pro Bowl cornerback, Richard Sherman, explained Campbell was upset because he lost his starting job to LB Dre Greenlaw, who was returning from a torn achilles, that he suffered in last year's Super Bowl.
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
"This is situation where [there is] frustration, player is frustrated," Sherman said. "Dre Greenlaw came back and they were going to give him the opportunity to play, he [Greenlaw] is an All-Pro style player, Pro-Bowl type player, guy who has been incredibly impactful, there was some frustration from De'Vondre, like 'hey I've played this whole season, I put my work in, put my time in'... you just can't do it though, this is a team sport."
"You quit on your team and you can't do that in the National Football League," Sherman concluded. "I'd be surprised if he was still on the team after that."
On the season, in Greenlaw's absence, Campbell appeared in 13 games and totaled 79 tackles, which ranks him second on the team behind Fred Warner (91).
And in view of the Thursday night game, Greenlaw had eight tackles in his first game back from last year's injury.
Ultimately, the sentiment from Campbell's coach and players is that he will presumably be cut, unless some sort of apology sways the locker room.
When a reporter asked Shanahan if "the team will release De'Vondre Campbell?"
The 49ers coach responded, "I don't know, we will figure out something. But I don't know that right now."
With this in mind, last season Campbell had been released from the Green Bay Packers, and posted a message on social media saying, "Someone is about to get a great football player that's been badly misused. O well let's get it though."
Remember when De’Vondre Campbell said this after the Green Bay Packer released him? pic.twitter.com/WqnhkaRhsu
— Wisconsinsane (@wisconsinsane) December 13, 2024
Then after being picked up by the 49ers because of Greenlaw's injury, it was presumably known that Campbell would only start until his teammate returned.
Notably, this was Campbell's ninth season in the league, as he was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fourth round, out of Minnesota, during the 2016 NFL Draft.
Throughout his career, the 31-year-old linebacker has accumulated 858 tackles in 128 games, to go with seven interceptions and a touchdown.
De'Vondre Campbell posted this less than six months ago…
Literally —OLD TAKES EXPOSED. pic.twitter.com/8JZHu5rynM
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) December 13, 2024
To make the situation worse, the 49ers ended the night with a 12-6 loss, which more than likely eliminates them from the playoffs.
De’Vondre Campbell on a random Thursday night in December pic.twitter.com/MJLyaQVW0n
— DraftKings (@DraftKings) December 13, 2024
And many fans compared this incident to when Antonio Brown walked off the field during a game vs. the New York Jets back on January 2, 2022.
One year ago today: Antonio Brown took off his jersey and bounced in middle of an NFL game.
He has not played ever since. pic.twitter.com/ZqWlAOHfqV
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) January 2, 2023