GREEN BAY, Wis. - One of the most incredible stories imaginable has come true.
Anthony Campbell, who had one tackle as a senior at Miami and was out of football for most of the 2025 regular season, has made the Green Bay Packers ' 53-man roster. As the 5 p.m. deadline approached and then passed, Campbel had not been told anything one way or the other. It was a case of no news being the best possible news.
It's an unthinkable development. Campbell played a total of 56 snaps for the Hurricanes in 2023 and 2024. He wasn't injured. He wasn't in trouble.
He just didn't play.
"Not wanting to bash nobody, but it's just opportunity," said Campbell, a native from Jamaica whose first taste of football came as a high school kicker in Bartow, Fla. "Stuff happens and then opportunity. You just got to be in the right place at the right time."
Campbell's lack of a college resume - he had only one tackle in two seasons at Miami - meant he went undrafted. His high-end physical tools - 6-foot-6, 307 pounds, 34 1/2-inch arms and a 5.01 in the 40 - got him a chance as an undrafted free agent with the Seahawks .
He didn't make their roster, had a cup of coffee on their practice squad and was released before Week 1. After that, all Campbell could do was wait for and work toward another opportunity that might never come his way.
The Packers gave him that opportunity. They signed him for the final week of the regular season. After two weeks of practice time, they gave him a futures contract after the season ended with the playoff loss at Chicago .
Campbell, with the scantest of college resumes, stood out from the moment the offseason practices started in May. First, it was batted passes. A lot of batted passes.
Rather than fade into the background once the pads came on during training camp, Campbell made more and more of an impact. He got into the backfield against the run. He rushed the quarterback against the pass. In the preseason, he tied for the team lead with two sacks and was second with seven pressures.
"You're talking about a guy, came to us Week 17, 18 last year, who's showing up every single day in practice with some type of ball production, whether in the run game, pass game and level of consistency," defensive run-game coordinator and assistant head coach DeMarcus Covington said.
Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Anthony Campbell fights off of a block by Arizona Cardinals offensive tackle Matt Pryor. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
"I give Gutey and his staff credit by the players and the people they bring in this building. They do a really good job of picking players who are willing to work, who have the right makeup and who have the right traits that if you mold them, if you pour into them, they can develop and bloom into something. And that's what A.C.'s doing."
This preseason, 121 interior defensive linemen had at least 30 pass-rushing opportunities. According to PFF, Campbell ranked fourth in pass-rush productivity, a metric that combines sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap, and was 10th in pass-rush win rate.
"A.C., man, he's a guy that's going to maximize every opportunity you give him," position coach Vince Oghobaase said during camp. "In the spring, every technique, every alignment, every drill, he wants to do it to perfection. When you get out there and tell him to do something to an offensive lineman aligned at this position, do this technique, he's going to do it.
"He's maximizing his opportunity. I think he's batted over 10, 12 balls over the course of training camp, dating back to the spring. He's been playing lights out, playing fearless, playing confident, playing with a chip on his shoulder. He's come a long way. He's done an incredible job. That confidence piece is huge for defensive linemen. When you're confident, and you play fast, you play free, things can happen for him. He's going like that (hand angled up)."
That upward trajectory continued. During the joint practice against Arizona , with Warren Brinson out due to injury, Campbell and Javon Hargrave were the No. 2 pairing at defensive tackle during a starters vs. starters 2-minute drill. Campbell concluded the preseason with a sack in the game against the Cardinals.
"It's been great," Campbell said after the game. "I was home the whole season last year after I got cut from Seattle . I had a chip on my shoulder like I need to go out there and do something, trying to earn a job somewhere. It sucks sitting at home watching football & you're not in. That's the worst part about it."
Not anymore. A career that was going nowhere in college, that appeared dead for most of his rookie season, is alive and thriving.
"I'm going to do whatever is possible to be out there," Campbell said.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/packers/onsi as He Barely Played in College But Just Made Packers' 53-Man Roster .
