SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said linebacker Devonde Campbell, who refused to play after losing his starting job, will not be a part of the 49ers moving forward. member.
Shanahan said the team is still figuring out how to deal with Campbell. During the team’s 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night, Campbell walked into the locker room and refused to play.
“His behavior in the game is not something you can do to your team or your teammates and still want to be a member of our team,” Shanahan said Friday. “We’re looking at the semantics right now, but we will be appropriate handle this situation properly.”
Shanahan said Campbell won’t be with the team for the final three weeks. Under the collective bargaining agreement, teams have the right to suspend players for up to four games without pay for conduct detrimental to the team. The Niners could also simply waive Campbell, which would make it possible for him to be claimed or signed by another team.
Campbell signed a one-year, $5 million contract with San Francisco in March.
Campbell started 12 of the first 13 games of the season and played 90 percent of the defensive snaps for the 49ers, but Dre Greenlaw returned to action Thursday night after suffering a torn left Achilles tendon in last season’s Super Bowl. After the first game, Campbell was benched.
When the 49ers wanted to play Campbell in the third quarter with Greenlaw out with Achilles soreness, Campbell refused, something Shanahan said has never happened to him in his time as an NFL head coach or assistant. On the body. Shanahan said Friday he hasn’t gotten any explanation from Campbell as to why he didn’t play.
Campbell then walked off the field with a towel over his head and into the locker room before the game against the Rams that all but ended the 49ers’ playoff hopes. Shanahan said he did not send Campbell to the locker room and did not know why he left the game.
“When I found out he wasn’t playing anymore, I turned to someone we could trust,” he said.
Campbell’s decision left his teammates angry and confused.
“He’s a pro,” cornerback Charvarius Ward said after the game. “He’s been playing for a long time. If he doesn’t want to play, he shouldn’t dress like this. He Could have told them before the game so I feel like it really hurts the team and we need a defender… in my opinion he’s probably going to be cut.”
Ward is one of several 49ers who have been sidelined by injury or personal tragedy during a difficult season for San Francisco. Ward’s 1-year-old daughter died on Oct. 28, but he has returned and played the final three games for San Francisco.
Tight end George Kittle called Campbell’s actions “stupid” and “immature.”
“This was a selfish decision made by one person,” Kittle said. “I’ve never been around anyone who has done this, and I hope there won’t be anyone around me who has ever done this.”
Campbell, 31, signed with San Francisco this offseason after being waived by Green Bay in March. He was named to the Packers’ All-Pro team in 2021, but his production declined in his final two seasons in Green Bay.
This led to Campbell taking to social media to complain about being abused by Green Bay. He was excited about joining a new team, but he never returned to the All-Pro level. Campbell has had some bright moments in San Francisco this season, but has often struggled with tackling and defense.
