While Dre Greenlaw recovers from a torn Achilles, new San Francisco linebacker De'Vondre Campbell is filling in next to Fred Warner on defense during 49ers training camp.
Campbell appears to be fitting in well with his new team thus far, but 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir knows some players just can't be replaced.
"You can't really make up for Dre," Lenoir said Tuesday on KNBR's "Murph & Markus." "Dre is a different type of player. He's one of the anchors of the defense. I would say he's always the hammer and not the nail. So when you lose a guy like that, it's kind of tough.
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"But I know De'Vondre, when he gets in there, he means business. Nothing but business. I could just see it in him."
Greenlaw sustained the freak injury during the 49ers' Super Bowl LVIII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
A fundamental piece to the 49ers' dominant defense, the 27-year-old linebacker continues to rehab the injury. An official timeline of Greenlaw's return currently is unknown, but 49ers general manager John Lynch said earlier this offseason that the linebacker likely will miss a few games at the beginning of the 2024 NFL season.
Campbell signed a free-agent contract with San Francisco on March 15 and already has impressed his teammates and those around him -- especially his new sidekick.
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"I love De'Vondre," Warner said Tuesday on KNBR's "Papa & Lund." "I love everything that he's brought to the group thus far. You talk about a guy who's played at a high level in this league. You can't take that for granted whether that was back in 2021 or not. I think that speaks to who he is and the type of caliber player that he is.
"Right now, seeing the savvy veteran presence that he brings out there on the field. Obviously he's a long, rangy player and can make a lot of plays in a lot of different ways. I love what I'm seeing out of him."
Campbell spent his first four NFL seasons with the Atlanta Falcons after being drafted in the fourth round out of the University of Minnesota. The linebacker played for the Arizona Cardinals for one season before joining the Green Bay Packers for the past three years.
Campbell was a first-team All-Pro in 2021, and with the Packers last season he recorded 75 combined tackles (three for loss), one fumble recovery, one pass defensed and two quarterback hits in 11 games.
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