Jack Campbell, one of the Detroit Lions’ first-round picks in 2023, is coming off a season in which he was named First-Team All Pro. Among all NFL linebackers, he finished the 2025 season second in tackles and second in PFF grade.
Heading into the final year of his rookie contract at just 25 years old, Campbell would have been more than warranted to chase a record-breaking contract for linebackers. The bar was set by future Hall of Famer Fred Warner, who signed a three-year, $63 million contract last
year—averaging $21 million per year.
But when Campbell’s contract details dropped last week, his four-year, $81 million deal fell just short of that mark ($20.5 million per year). In fact, his deal is only a slight bump up from the five-year, $100 million deal Roquan Smith signed three years ago. While most of his contract terms are ranked in the top five at the position, he didn’t top any of them in overall value, average per year, or guaranteed money.
On Wednesday, Campbell said it wasn’t important for him to be named the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL. His number one priority was to stay in Detroit.
“I told (Lions general manager) Brad (Holmes) this, the number one thing for me through this whole entire process was to remain a Lion because I want to be a part of this,” Campbell said. “I want to be a part of this organization. Me and my wife absolutely love it here. People have just been so nice to us and it just feels like home.”
Of course money was a factor in contract negotiations. No matter how much someone loves the game or their franchise, they want to be compensated fairly and to be able to take care of their family. But for Campbell, he was happy to just be in the range of the top linebackers, while giving the Lions some extra freedom to build around Campbell and the rest of the Lions defense.
“Let’s be realistic here, I already have more than enough,” Campbell said. “So, for me, it was more about the principle of I just want to be in the elite category because I feel like I’m an elite linebacker.”
Of course, like a true midwesterner, he felt the need to apologize to his fellow linebackers for not pushing the market higher.
“I don’t need to be the highest-paid, even though the guys around the league would probably appreciate that because it bumps up everything else, so I’m sorry to them,” Campbell said. “But I just feel like, for me, I knew what I wanted in this. I want to help the team in any way possible, just to continue to keep the core together. At the end of the day, I feel like it was fair for the team, and I’m more than happy with everything that they’ve blessed me with.”
