D.J. Campbell

Darion Lamar Campbell Jr. (born July 24, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, and was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers, and Arizona Cardinals.

Early life Campbell played high school basketball and football at Cheyenne High School in North Las Vegas, Nevada, where he was a two-time first-team All-State selection in the latter sport. As a senior cornerback, Campbell led his team with 61 tackles and had eight interceptions, including four returned for touchdowns.

College career Campbell played college football at the University of California, Berkeley, after also receiving 39 scholarship offers from schools such as Arizona State, Fresno State, Nevada, UNLV and UTEP. In four seasons with the Golden Bears, Campbell started 14 of 46 games played and totaled 110 tackles (4.5 for a loss), two sacks, two interceptions, seven pass breakups, one forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

Carolina Panthers On April 28, Campbell was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round (216th overall) of the 2012 NFL draft. He was the Panthers' seventh and final selection of the draft and joined cornerback Josh Norman as one of two defensive backs selected by the team.

Campbell agreed to terms on a four-year contract with the Panthers on May 10, 2012. As a rookie, he was inactive for the first 11 regular season contests of the year, but ended up starting four of the final five games at strong safety due to an injury to Charles Godfrey. The Panthers won each of his starts, ending the season on a four-game winning streak as Campbell finished his rookie campaign with 12 tackled and a pass defensed.

In 2013, Campbell lost a competition for the Panthers' starting strong safety job to Mike Mitchell during the preseason and eventually landed on injured reserve with a leg injury. He was waived with an injury settlement on September 9, making him a free agent. On November 11, he was promoted to the active roster to replace waived safety Jordan Kovacs prior to the Dolphins' Monday Night Football meeting with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

San Francisco 49ers Campbell signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers on January 7, 2014. The 49ers waived Campbell on August 25, 2014.

Arizona Cardinals On February 4, 2015, Campbell was signed by the Arizona Cardinals. On August 11, 2015, he was released by the Cardinals.

Personal life Campbell has an older sister and a younger brother. When he was six years old, his 27-year-old mother, Deborah, suffered a fatal gunshot wound. As a result of the killing, his father, Darion Sr., was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served 13 years in prison and his uncle, Uricos, was convicted of second-degree murder. Campbell, Jr. and his two siblings later lived with his aunt, Valencia, and his uncle.

Campbell considers himself an Atlanta Braves fan, which stems from memories of his later mother. He majored in social welfare at California, Berkeley.