Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers will have to navigate another significant stretch of football without Nick Bosa.
The All-Pro edge rusher suffered a season-ending ACL tear in his right knee in the 49ers’ Week 3 win over the Arizona Cardinals. It marks the third time Bosa has suffered a knee injury in his football career and the second time in his seven-year tenure with San Francisco. Bosa, 27, tore the ACL in his left knee two games into the 2020 season, so he understands the grueling rehab that awaits; he diligently worked his way back to the field and elite production four years ago.
But as Bosa will have to wait until next season to possibly put up elite numbers again, the 49ers can’t wait to replace that production. Sitting atop the NFC West at 3-0, Shanahan and the 49ers must forge a path forward to replace the void left by not having one of the best pass rushers in the league. Bosa’s 55.5 sacks since 2021 are fourth in the NFL over that time. The five-time Pro Bowler had also started the season strong, with two sacks and 10 quarterback pressures through three games.
The 49ers are 6-12 when Bosa is not in the lineup, including finishing 6-10 in the 2020 season, when he missed 14 games due to a knee injury.
“You don’t just replace a guy like Nick,” San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters. “Everyone’s got to continue to get better at everything. It’s the same thing I’d be preaching if we did have Nick, too. When you lose your better players, it gets harder. But I also expect throughout this year all our players to get better as it goes.”
Shanahan went on to say the team will take a committee approach to replacing Bosa’s lost production, but the 49ers also will consider a trade to help fill the void.
“There’s got to be trade options that make sense for you and another team,” Shanahan said. “But you can’t just do that stuff just to do it.”
The 49ers have made 11 midseason trades since Shanahan and general manager John Lynch took over in 2017. They haven’t been afraid to go hunting for big names, either, securing Christian McCaffrey in a blockbuster move three years ago. They’ve also acquired the likes of Chase Young and Randy Gregory two years ago for pass rush help opposite Bosa.
ADVERTISEMENT
Can San Francisco swing a similar move this year, or will it have to rely on someone already in-house to do that? Let’s take a closer look at how the 49ers can keep afloat with Bosa out for the season.
The benefit of standing pat
San Francisco used the draft to infuse the defense with new young talent. At the top of that movement to get younger on that side of the ball was selecting Mykel Williams in the first round. Even though Williams is dealing with a wrist injury, the expectation will be for the Georgia product to live up to his draft status sooner rather than later, making more impactful plays on a regular basis with Bosa out.
Mykel Williams will have to turn pressures into sacks with Nick Bosa out. (Photo by Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
San Francisco also traded for Bryce Huff from the Philadelphia Eagles in the offseason to bolster the team’s pass rush. With Bosa out, Huff is expected to take on a larger role. Huff has two sacks on the season.
Yetur Gross-Matos, limited as he works back from offseason knee surgery, and Sam Okuayinonu will also be expected to help fill the void as role players. And the 49ers could use Fred Warner to blitz more in obvious passing situations, taking advantage of his savviness to run stunts as an experienced pass rusher.
But will that be enough to keep the 49ers atop the division and make some noise in the playoffs? Only five teams have fewer than San Francisco’s five sacks through the first three weeks of the season.
Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh might look to blitz more with Bosa out. According to Next Gen Stats, San Francisco’s 23.1% blitz percentage is No. 24 in the NFL.
Once again, San Francisco has dealt with a rash of injuries, with tight end George Kittle (hamstring), receiver Jauan Jennings (shoulder), receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) and quarterback Brock Purdy (toe, shoulder) all missing time this season. However, Purdy is expected to practice this week and could play against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
Brock Purdy has missed the 49ers’ last two games. When he returns, Purdy and the offense will have to help fill the void created by Nick Bosa’s injury. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
Kittle and Jennings should also return at some point this season, while wide receiver Demarcus Robinson is expected to return to practice this week after starting the season with a three-game suspension.
San Francisco chose to sign Purdy to a five-year, $265 million deal for a reason. Purdy and McCaffrey must raise the level of play of others around them for the 49ers to succeed, which means the offense needs to generate more than the 19.7 points per game they are producing through three weeks.
Bottom line, with San Francisco missing one of the team’s best players on defense, the offense will be expected to pick up the slack and carry more of the load by scoring more points, generating longer drives and giving the defense a break.
After a contentious contract negotiation, the Bengals agreed to pay Hendrickson a one-year, $29 million deal for the 2025 season. But with Cincinnati unwilling to sign the talented pass rusher to a long-term deal and things looking bleak with Joe Burrow out for an extended period, would the Bengals be willing to entertain a trade?
Trey Hendrickson is in a contract year. (Photo by Kara Durrette/Getty Images)
The Green Bay Packers recently gave up two first-round picks and Kenny Clark for Micah Parsons and then signed him to a contract that made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league. The league’s NFL trade deadline is Nov. 4. According to Over the Cap, the 49ers have $25.7 million in salary cap space.
At 30 years old, Hendrickson is four years older than Parsons but has been just as productive over the last two seasons. Would San Francisco be willing to give up what it would take in trade compensation to secure Hendrickson? Would he be a one-year rental, or would it pay Hendrickson a lucrative long-term deal due to Bosa’s injury uncertainty?
The veteran 31-year-old pass rusher totaled 8.5 sacks last year with San Francisco, so the 49ers know he can be productive in their system. Floyd also played two seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, so he’s familiar with the NFC West.
Floyd’s averaging 27 defensive reps a game for the Falcons, totaling a sack and four pressures through three games. He’s on a one-year, $10 million deal in Atlanta after the 49ers released him earlier this year in a cost-cutting move. Floyd finished second for San Francisco in sacks with 8.5 in 2024 and played in all 17 games, which stands out for a team with a bad injury history.
Now with the Falcons, Leonard Floyd had a productive year with the 49ers in 2024. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
The Falcons selected two pass rushers this year in the first round in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. With Atlanta struggling through the first part of the season, the 33-year-old Floyd could be available as a pass rusher for hire to help fill the void with Bosa out.
Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on X at @eric_d_williams.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
What did you think of this story?
recommended
Get more from the National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
