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San Francisco 49ers linebacker De’Vondre Campbell made headlines over the weekend after quitting on his team. The defender chose not to play in a matchup vs. the Rams.
He was seen heading back to the locker room early in the second half of action. The 49ers would wind up losing the contest, 12-6.
Campbell started 12 games this season on the San Francisco defense. He took a backseat to Dre Greenlaw last Thursday with the defender making his return from an injury suffered in the Super Bowl.
Campbell wasn’t happy with being replaced, so when he was asked to sub in for his teammate throughout the course of the game, he refused. It infuriated players, coaches, and management.
“His actions from the game are not something you can do to your team or your teammates and still expect to be a part of the team,” said head coach Kyle Shanahan. That led many to believe a release was inevitable.
That doesn’t seem to be the case, however. It looks like the 49ers are trying to be as petty as possible in their punishment.
#49ers John Lynch confronted De’Vondre Campbell and kicked him off the sideline after learning the LB refused to enter the game, per @JayGlazer
The team is looking to suspend him the maximum amount so he does not get paid or have a chance to sign with another team pic.twitter.com/AFnJCQg1cb
— 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙎𝙁𝙉𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨 (@TheSFNiners) December 15, 2024
They’d prefer to give him a maximum suspension. That might allow them to avoid paying De’Vondre Campbell money which might still be owed if they simply cut him loose.
What that max penalty might look like, we still don’t know. “[We’re] still working on the semantics of exactly how to deal with it,” said Shanahan.
The head coach is set on keeping him off the field. He wants to ensure Campbell learns his lesson about quitting on teammates.
Cutting Campbell would give the linebacker an opportunity to continue playing with another team. It would also allow him to keep getting paid. The 49ers want neither after the display of poor sportsmanship. They want to keep him on the team and on the sidelines.