Anthony Campbell has gone from afterthought to headline in Green Bay in a hurry.
When the Packers opened training camp, the 6-foot-6, 307-pound defensive tackle looked like a long shot at best. He was an undrafted player in 2025, had managed just one tackle and half a sack in 56 defensive snaps over two seasons at Miami, and arrived in Green Bay with almost no runway. Less than two weeks into camp, he’s turned into the team’s most unlikely summer breakthrough.
That’s what makes his rise so striking: Campbell didn’t show up with draft pedigree, a track record as a promising reserve, or even much organizational history. Seattle signed him after the draft, waived him at the end of camp, and kept him briefly on the practice squad. Green Bay didn’t bring him aboard until January 7.
And he walked into a defensive line room that was already crowded. Devonte Wyatt, Karl Brooks, Warren Brinson, Nazir Stackhouse, and other returning players were already in the mix.
Then the Packers added veteran Javon Hargrave and spent a third-round pick on Chris McClellan. Campbell looked like a depth-chart filler fighting for scraps.
Instead, he’s become one of camp’s most disruptive defensive linemen.
The first signs came fast. Campbell batted down four passes over three practices, an eye-opening stretch for a player who had only two pass breakups in 26 college games at Louisiana-Monroe and Miami. He then added a fifth deflection on Family Night at Lambeau Field, along with pressure on Kyle McCord that nearly turned into an interception.
But the real story is everything that came after those deflections. Campbell chased Jordan Love out of the pocket during one practice, blew up a running play, and notched a would-be sack.
He also created pressure against Tyrod Taylor and got into the backfield against Kyron Drones. On August 4, he won all four of his reps in the one-on-one pass-rushing drill.
A week later, he helped stop a run near the line and was part of the defensive group used during Tuesday’s closing two-minute period.
That’s the part that changes the conversation. One tipped pass can be a fluke.
Five across multiple practices start to look like a skill. Add the pressures, the pass-rush wins, and the run stops, and Campbell’s impact is clearly more than just standing at the line with his arms in the air.
Injuries to Wyatt and Hargrave gave him more work early in camp, but that only opened the door. Plenty of defensive tackles got extra chances. Campbell kept cashing them in.
He’s still listed near the bottom of Green Bay’s unofficial depth chart, and nothing is locked up yet. Practice success still has to hold up when the preseason games start. But his camp has already forced the Packers to take him seriously.
Jaylin Simpson and Brandon Cisse also have made noise. Simpson delivered a circus interception on Family Night, broke up two passes the next day, then returned another pick about 100 yards for a touchdown on Monday.
He earned second-team reps and praise from LaFleur after starting camp on the bubble. Cisse, meanwhile, took advantage of Carrington Valentine’s hamstring injury to get heavy first-team work and has repeatedly challenged established receivers.
Even so, Campbell’s case stands apart. Cisse was a second-round pick and the Packers’ first selection in the 2026 NFL draft.
Simpson was a 2024 fifth-round pick with NFL game experience already on his résumé. Campbell came in with almost no college production, no regular-season NFL snaps, and only a few months in the Packers’ system.
For him, just surviving this competition would have counted as progress. Instead, he’s become one of the defense’s most persistent playmakers.
Campbell hasn’t made the roster yet. But he has completely changed the terms of the debate.
Green Bay is no longer asking whether he deserves attention. The question now is whether the Packers can afford to leave him off the team.
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