Campbell Ranked Among NFL’s Best Veteran Bargains

After missing 10 days with COVID, De’Vondre Campbell returned to record 16 tackles vs. Chicago on Sunday, tied for the most by a Packers defender since 2000.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers in June signed veteran linebacker De’Vondre Campbell to a one-year, $2 million contract.

In terms of annual salary, Campbell ranks 55th among off-the-ball linebackers. Former Packers linebacker Blake Martinez is making $10.25 million per season with the Giants. To replace Martinez, the Packers were interested in Cory Littleton and Joe Schobert but were priced out of the market, with Littleton signing with the Raiders on a deal averaging $11.75 million and Schobert joining the Jaguars on a contract averaging $10.75 million.

They are among 16 linebackers averaging at least $10 million per season.

Nick Kwiatkoski is averaging $7 million per season. In his two seasons with Las Vegas, he has a total of 102 tackles. A.J. Klein, who grew up in nearby Kimberly, is averaging $6 million per season. In his two seasons with Buffalo, he has 105 tackles.

Two players who might have interested the Packers in the first round of this year’s draft had they been available were Jamin Davis and Zaven Collins. Collins went No. 16 to Arizona and has 22 tackles. Davis went No. 19 to Washington and has 57 tackles.

Former Packers linebacker Christian Kirksey signed with Houston on a one-year deal worth $3 million.

By now, you get the point.

Campbell has been an incredible bargain as the team’s every-down standout at linebacker. In fact, The 33rd Team, the Web site operated by former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum, hailed Campbell as one of the five best veteran bargains in the league this year.

Kevin Ivers rightly called Campbell a “godsend” to the Packers’ defense.

“He is eighth in the NFL in tackles and sports the lowest missed tackle rate of all players with at least 100 tackles,” Ivers wrote as part of his summation. “He will almost certainly be a Pro Bowler and potentially even an All-Pro, all for a price tag lower than that of many backups at the same position. Campbell has undoubtedly been one of the biggest bargains of the season and was arguably the best signing of last offseason, and expect a pay increase this upcoming offseason.”

After missing 10 days with COVID, Campbell returned to record 16 tackles vs. Chicago on Sunday, tied for the most by a Packers defender since 2000 and one off his career high, set in 2019 with Atlanta. Of the 17 players with at least 100 tackles, Campbell and Washington’s Cole Holcomb are the only players with at least one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one interception.

The 28-year-old has positioned himself for a big payday in free agency this coming offseason.

“Yeah, he was phenomenal,” coach Matt LaFleur said after the game. “It speaks to the person, the fact that he doesn’t practice all week and then he goes out there and leads us with 16 tackles, was all over the field. He’s playing at a really high level, a Pro Bowl level, in my opinion. He’s been a great addition to this football team, and I’ve just got so much respect for him. He’s just been everything that we could ever want in a player and then some.”

Campbell isn’t the only Packers player on the five-player list. Another starter ranks 129th in his position group in average salary. Click here for the rest of the story.