De'Vondre Campbell and 4 other losers from 49ers' crushing defeat to Rams

De'Vondre Campbell wasn't just the only sour note from the 49ers' knockout blow of a loss to the Rams on Thursday night.

When looking back at the San Francisco 49ers' 12-6 Thursday Night Football loss to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 15, one that effectively eliminated the Niners from playoff contention, fans will assuredly circle linebacker De'Vondre Campbell's decision to quit on his team in-game as the No. 1 takeaway

Rightfully so. After all, such instances are rare, and San Francisco isn't exactly known for that kind of reputation among its players. Certainly not during head coach Kyle Shanahan's tenure.

Perhaps that's why Shanahan, cornerback Charvarius Ward and even tight end George Kittle didn't pull punches when calling out Campbell for his selfish decision.

Campbell's in-game resigning could have been one of the many reasons why the 49ers lost a crucial primetime NFC West showdown. After all, the Niners lost linebackers Dre Greenlaw and Dee Winters to injury earlier and needed the former All-Pro to step in after taking a reduced role upon Greenlaw's 2024 season debut.

However, as bad as Campbell's decision was, is and will be, it's not the sole reason why San Francisco coughed up such an ugly performance at the worst possible moment.

No, these other 49ers are pretty big losers from the defeat, too.

Loser: Deebo Samuel

Campbell might end up being the fanbase's No. 1 villain from 2024, but wide receiver Deebo Samuel is certainly trending in that direction, too, which is odd considering how big a team hero he has been over the course of his career.

Samuel, who made waves by complaining on social media about not getting enough touches, finally got some attention on Thursday night. Yet he made nearly nothing of it, hauling in three passes on a team-high seven targets for just 16 yards, which included a crucial dropped pass that could have gone for a Niners touchdown.

Oh, and as a rusher, the "wide back" struggles continued as Samuel had two carries for 3 yards.

Yeah.

Loser: Brock Purdy

As far as accountability is concerned, quarterback Brock Purdy didn't hesitate to shoulder the blame for his performance under the bright lights.

"I thought the defense and special teams played so good," Purdy told reporters after the game. "And that's what's hurting me is I just feel like I failed the team."

It's a far cry from Campbell, yes. But it doesn't absolve a shoddy performance from the quarterback, whose late-game interception all but sealed San Francisco's fate in 2024. Completing less that 50 percent of his passes for 142 yards with the pick in a must-win game isn't exactly indicative of a franchise-caliber signal-caller.

And the performance certainly didn't alleviate any concerns about Purdy operating in inclement weather either.

Loser: 49ers offensive line

Of course, Purdy isn't alone in the offense's struggles.

LA controlled the line of scrimmage throughout when the 49ers offense was on the field, shutting down running back Isaac Guerendo and the ground attack while regularly putting pressure on Purdy.

As far as pass protection went, the bulk of the Niners offensive line was wholly overwhelmed. Uncharacteristically, rookie right guard Dominick Puni was credited with allowing the two sacks his quarterback took, while all five starters surrendered at least three pressures in the contest.

Minus All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams, who is still out with an ankle injury, San Francisco's O-line displayed why it's in need of a major offseason overhaul.

Loser: Kyle Shanahan

If Week 15 is a microcosm of the entire season, one can see how things have fallen apart for the 49ers despite having the talent and opportunities to remain a Super Bowl contender.

Ultimately, that all falls on the head coach.

Shanahan can't be blamed for Deebo's crucial drop, nor can he be blamed for Purdy's late-game interception. But, the former can bear responsibility for trying to involve Samuel more when doing so hasn't exactly gone the Niners' way. And he can bear blame for his offense going a mere 3-of-12 on third down and not once even making it into the red zone despite the poor weather.

Ultimately, San Francisco's offense still had plenty of necessary elements and ingredients to pull off a win, especially when its defense held Los Angeles to just 12 points.

But, the 49ers weren't able to do so, and it happened on Shanahan's watch at the worst possible time.

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