Getty De'Vondre Campbell #59 of the Arizona Cardinals reacts after a sack during the second half against the Miami Dolphins at State Farm Stadium on November 08, 2020 in Glendale, Arizona.
De’Vondre Campbell is officially the Green Bay Packers’ newest veteran.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst announced Wednesday the signing of Campbell one day after the team hosted the former Atlanta Falcons and Arizona Cardinals starting linebacker for a visit. The Packers also released running back Mike Weber in a corresponding move to clear space on their 90-man roster.
Campbell was present and practicing with the Packers’ other linebackers on Wednesday for their second day of mandatory minicamp, wearing the No. 59. The 27-year-old will expectedly compete for a starting job at inside linebacker with second-year talents Krys Barnes and Kamal Martin as well as third-year Ty Summers.
The Packers were only missing a handful of players for minicamp’s second day. While Preston Smith, Elgton Jenkins and Dean Lowry remain in COVID-19 protocol, Za’Darius Smith was cleared to return to the practice field on Wednesday. The Packers were also without star quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who continues to hold out from team activities.
The latest Packers news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Packers newsletter here!
Will Campbell Take Over Kirksey’s Reps?
The Packers now have a veteran middle linebacker with a proven track record to help support their young room, but it remains unclear whether Campbell is simply being brought in to support youngsters with his experience or lead the way as their replacement for former veteran Christian Kirksey, who was cut in February.
There are things to like about Campbell’s playing history over his five seasons in the NFL. For starters, he has only missed five games due to injuries over his career and all of them came during his rookie season in 2016 after the Falcons took him with a fourth-round pick. He also started every game at weakside linebacker for the Cardinals in 2020, tallying 99 combined tackles with a career-high seven for a loss.
Unfortunately, Campbell also missed a career-high 13 tackles and struggled to impose his will against the run game for Arizona’s defense. While he started off the year looking strong alongside Jordan Hicks, his performances grew less impactful in the back half of the season as he dealt with minor injuries and the Cardinals strived to give more playing time to first-round rookie Isaiah Simmons.
Campbell finished the 2020 season with a below-average grade (49.0) from Pro Football Focus with the strongest aspect of his game — in coverage — not grading out much better (51.5). Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, however, was on the Falcons’ coaching staff when he was drafted back in 2016 and is excited about what Campbell can offer his defense in 2021.
“I was fortunate enough to be with De’Vondre back when we drafted him in Atlanta and studied a lot of his film with Arizona,” LaFleur said of Campbell after Wednesday’s practice. “He’s a guy that’s a big long guy that can run. He definitely brings a different dynamic to that room and his ability to just be able to cover, whether it’s tight ends or backs. We think he’s a really versatile player.”
Weber Faced Long-Shot Odds to Make Roster
The Packers could have trimmed down at a few positions when deciding where to make room for Campbell’s arrival, but it isn’t exactly surprising to see Weber on his way out given the loaded status of their running back room.
Weber was a 2019 seventh-round pick for the Dallas Cowboys who was unable to crack the initial 53-man roster behind Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard and spent his entire rookie regular season on their practice squad. He got an opportunity to join the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad for their Super Bowl run that postseason and earned himself an offseason contract after they were crowned champions, but he only made it a few months before the Chiefs added new rushers and cut him loose.
A third opportunity came knocking for Weber in November 2020 when the Packers needed depth to fill out their shrinking running back room. At the time, Aaron Jones had just bounced back from a calf injury, but second-round rookie AJ Dillon was on the reserve/COVID-19 list and Dexter Williams and Tyler Ervin were both sidelined with injuries. That left Weber as their only option for a No. 3 back behind Jones and Jamaal Williams.
Despite getting called up to the gameday roster in Weeks 11 and 12, though, Weber never took a snap on offense or special teams. The Packers did sign him to a reserve/future contract on Jan. 25, but that was before signing Jones to a four-year, $48 million extension and taking Kylin Hill in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL draft.
The Packers are now down to five running backs: Jones, Dillon, Dexter Williams, Hill and second-year Patrick Taylor, who spent all of 2020 on the reserve/non-football injury list as he worked back from an injury sustained in college.