The San Francisco 49ers plan to suspend linebacker De’Vondre Campbell for three games to end his season, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said Campbell will not be a part of the 49ers moving forward after losing his starting job and refusing to play.
The team was sorting through its options after Campbell walked into the locker room Thursday night during a 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
“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 he was benched Thursday night after Dre Greenlaw returned. His first game since tearing his left Achilles tendon in last season’s Super Bowl.
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.
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.
—With files from The Associated Press.
