“He shows up every day and does the right thing,” defensive coordinator Nick Rallis said. “Practices hard, studies hard, knows his assignments, and I think he’s just been a good example as the standard of what being a pro looks like. He is a very good outgoing leader who is very intentional of bringing people around with him.”

Campbell likes to joke that – while it is close – rookie teammate Walter Nolen III is closer in age to Campbell’s 5-year-old son than Campbell himself.

But he could end up playing with a rookie even younger than Big Walt.

“The last few years I’ve been through this process I’ve known pretty quickly that I’ve wanted to play again,” Campbell said. “It didn’t take me that long – within a month or so, I knew I wanted to play football again. We’ll see. I hope to know quickly if I don’t want to play football again. The biggest thing is if I do want to play football again, I give myself the opportunities to play football again. I try to always sign my work and play at a level that they want me back. Even if I decide not to play again, I want to have the ability to say no, rather than them saying, ‘See you later.'”

Campbell, who would turn 40 right before the 2026 regular season, will be a free agent. If he were to play again, it wouldn’t necessarily be in Arizona – although his homecoming, other than the team’s record, has been a success, he said. Assuming the Cardinals feel Campbell would still be effective, his tangibles and intangibles would be valuable on a team trying to rebound from a tough 2025.

The postseason process comes first, he said. The body has to be right. And then, does he have the desire? He will do not much of anything immediately after the season, but he will watch playoff games. That will fill him both with FOMO and that twinge to return – he said watching those games has stoked his desire to return the last couple of years.

Whether that’s the same feeling this year, well, it’s TBD.

“I’ve always tried to play well enough that I have a choice,” Campbell said. “I think I did well enough this year that I will have a choice. That’s a good feeling.”