Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers made a ‘mistake’ by signing LB De’Vondre Campbell from free agency
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted that his team should have considered all the possibilities before signing linebacker De'Vondre Campbell, considering his checkered past.
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Kyle Shanahan and De'Vondre Campbell (Image via IMAGO/X)
It’s not often a head coach goes around saying that he and his teams made the wrong move by signing a player. Kyle Shanahan, on the other hand, had no hesitation in labeling De’Vondre Campbell’s addition to the 49ers team a mistake.
The 49ers suspended Campbell after he refused to play during their Week 15 loss against the Los Angeles Rams. General manager John Lynch broke the news after players vented their frustration at the stunt pulled by the veteran defensive end.
Shanahan and Lynch signed Campbell as the temporary replacement for linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who was recovering from a torn Achilles. They viewed the 31-year-old as a safety net until Greenlaw returned, which he did in the Rams fixture, leading to the sudden Campbell abandoning his team in the middle of the game.
It was tough losing Dre [Greenlaw]. We knew we were going to need a starting-caliber linebacker. We had two guys that we thought we had committed that we lost in free agency. Then another guy got cut after that and became available.
Kyle Shanahan said
Shanahan revealed managing Campbell when he was the offensive coordinator in Atlanta. The Falcons drafted the Minnesota graduate in the fourth round back in 2016. He remembers Campbell being a good player even though playing in defense isn’t his area. However, there were anger issues after he moved to the Packers.
I know a lot of guys who have coached him who have been good. And we obviously made a mistake. It’s not something that we didn’t look into. We look into everything. You weigh the risk-reward of stuff.
Kyle Shanahan added
Kyle Shanahan on the signing of De'Vondre Campbell during free agency:
— Coach Yac ? (@Coach_Yac) December 18, 2024
“We obviously made a mistake.” pic.twitter.com/j9PPt7xzfk
How much De’Vondre Campbell will lose because of the 49ers suspension
The Packers released Campbell on 13 March this year, and five days later he signed a one-year prove-it contract with the 49ers. Barely ten months into the deal, the Niners suspended Campbell, leaving him in a contract hell.
The key word is ‘suspended’. Lynch and Co. did not ‘release’ Campbell, because he is still a quality player who racked up 79 combined tackles and 2 pass deflections this year, to go someplace and play football. They basically want to teach him a lesson.
Refusal to play may cost De’Vondre Campbell up to $873,332 and ultimately save the 49ers that much against the cap:
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) December 16, 2024
$201,666 (3 games base salary)
$60,000 (3 games of per-game bonus)
Up to $111,666 of signing bonus
$500,000 playtime incentive not met https://t.co/mt21YtW2sa
The first call for action would be to recoup the base salary; after that, they can pursue $111,000, costing Campbell $850,000 in salary (HT/Spotrac).
It will be in the 6-8 49ers’ best interest to wait it out and see what happens in the remaining three games. They need to beat all of them (the Dolphins, Lions, and Cardinals) to even have a chance to play in the wild card.
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Ishan Misra
(3023 Articles Published)