Arizona Cardinals' Calais Campbell proud of 'still being an elite player'

On the day the Arizona Cardinals held their first open practice of training camp, veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell made his official return to the franchise. When the fans started pouring into State Farm Stadium, they quickly began chanting his name in admiration.

It was an emotional experience for a guy who turns 39 on Sept. 1 and is entering his 18th NFL season.

“Yeah, that was pretty sweet,” Campbell said the next day, July 24. “A couple of the guys were teasing me and giving me a hard time because I guess I acknowledged the fans a little bit. I’m like, ‘Man, this is a surreal moment. I’ve got to accept a little bit of the flowers and appreciate all the love from all the fanbase.’

“It’s been incredible. The fanbase has always been very strong and always shown me a lot of love. And it’s cool they’re welcoming me back with open arms and still giving me a lot of love.”

If you’ve ever met him, had a chance to talk with him, or have simply just followed his career since he came to the NFL in 2008 and spent his first nine seasons in Arizona with the Cardinals, you know there’s a lot to love in the 6-foot-8 Calais Campbell.

He is every bit the gentle giant when he’s not between the white lines. When it’s go-time, of course, he immediately morphs from a big teddy bear into the Incredible Hulk with rage and destruction and becomes a quarterback’s worst nightmare.

And don’t think he still can’t do it all these years later, even eight long years removed from when he last starred in Arizona.

“Yeah. I think I take a lot of pride in still being an elite player,” Campbell, a six-time Pro Bowl selection and member of the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team, said. “In moments, I feel like no matter who it is, I would love to go up against the best of them and still throw them around and beat ’em. I can’t be out there every play anymore, which definitely is a hurt to my pride.”

“But it’s cool that I can be out there and still dominate 50% of the time.”

The intensity of the Cardinals’ camp is expected to spike on July 28 when the team has its first fully padded practice. To Campbell, that’s when an NFL player gets a true evaluation of where he is at, what he needs to work on, and where he needs to get better.

“It’s kind of funny,” he said. “When I was younger, I used to dread the intense practices just because the physicality and the pain that comes from it. Your fingers get all bruised up and everything’s all kind of messed up. … But those full-pad days where you get the most banged up feel the most like football, the most like game day

“Like the old saying goes, if you practice like it’s a game, then on game day it will be like practice. Throughout my career, on padded days I practice like it’s game day.”

It’s not as easy as it used to be for Campbell, the oldest player on the roster, who was tearing up the NFL when a lot of his teammates were still riding around in car seats.

Ask him if he really feels that much older than some of Arizona’s rookies, and he laughs.

“Um, I definitely feel way older than the rookies,” he said. “The conversations, the experiences, just the knowledge, the confidence, all that stuff is 17 years more. And the body definitely. It’s like, ‘I wish I felt like you feel right now.’ I still feel good, though. I still feel great. I still feel I can go out there and dominate, and that’s all that matters.”

Ask him if he needs to prepare a lot differently in Year 18, and he laughs again.

“There’s a lot that’s different,” he said. “We’ll be here for a while if I listed everything that was different.”

Ask him if he’s looking for scheduled veteran days off during camp, and he laughs once more.

“Honestly, I have to take veteran days off,” Campbell said. “I don’t know if I’m going to be looking forward to them. … But Year 18, it would be impossible for me to be ready to go Week 1 if I don’t take some time off. So, I’m definitely going to take some veteran days.”

Campbell said he’s been fortunate and blessed to be playing this long. There’s been no “magic formula” to it, he says. He’s just been able to avoid injuries and find good people to help him take care of his body.

He flirted with the idea of retirement a year ago before signing with the Miami Dolphins. But after starting all 17 games and racking up 52 tackles, 12 for loss, with 12 quarterback hits, five sacks and five pass breakups, he still felt he had more to give.

The Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year in 2019, Campbell had offers from a handful of teams this year but chose to return to the Cardinals to finish what he started, saying, “I want to win.”

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Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort was more than willing to bring him back aboard, noting what a menace Campbell was against the team during a game last season when he reached over Arizona’s entire offensive line to knock the football away from quarterback Kyler Murray.

“This is not just some farewell, homecoming tour,” Ossenfort said. “Calais is still playing at a high level. He’s going to be a big part of what we’re doing, defensively. He’s going to bring length, disruptiveness, size, pass-rushing ability, run-stopping ability. We’re just happy that it worked out to be able to bring him in here.”

Campbell said the Cardinals have talent “all over the place” and calls the coaching staff “top notch.” Right now, he said, the Cardinals have the look of a winning team in 2025.

“It obviously takes time,” he said, “but it’s the teams that execute, teams that don’t beat themselves, guys are where they’re supposed to be. You’ve got to have talent, guys that can get the job done. But a winning team, you can definitely see it. It’s there.”

“It’s too early to tell for this team, but it looks good so far. The writing will be on the wall once we get the pads on and start moving and playing some real football.”

That’s when Calais Campbell starts to feel young again. Well, in spirit, at least.

Reach McManaman at bob.mcmanaman@arizonarepublic. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @azbobbymac and listen to him live every Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. on Roc and Manuch with Jimmy B on ESPN 620 (KTAR-AM).

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Calais Campbell feels great, but still will need some days off

Arizona Cardinals’ Calais Campbell proud of ‘still being an elite player’

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