There was a sigh of relief when Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported on Wednesday night that Nick Bosa just sustained an ankle sprain, which might, at worst, force the rookie defensive end to miss the preseason.
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch joined KNBR on Thursday morning and shared that the injury is more significant than Rapoport suggested. He says Bosa didn't suffer a full-blown version of the "dreaded high-ankle sprain," but "it has some components of that." Lynch called it "significant," however.
"It's safe to say we won't see him in the preseason, and then we're going to be very prudent," Lynch said.
As for his availability for Week 1, the 49ers GM said a lot more would be learned on Thursday and in the coming weeks as the team looks at how he is responding.
"We want him right for this season," Lynch said. "So it's safe to say we won't see him in the preseason, and we'll go from there."
Bosa went down after a running play during Wednesday's practice and was examined by trainers before finally getting up and walking off the field under his own power. Although, as Chris Biderman of the Sacramento Bee reported, he was "walking gingerly."
"We want him right," Lynch added. "We're not going to put his health or our team's—we're going to do what's in the best interest, and trust the medical staff on that, and trust Nick."
Head coach Kyle Shanahan joined KNBR a couple of hours later and provided his own update.
"It's a serious ankle injury," Shanahan said. "It could have been a lot worse. The way we saw it on tape, we had a big pile up. We had a very big man fall on his leg. I think we were very fortunate that he's a good enough athlete that he got his leg out of there. I think a lot of other people, it would have been his knee. But he got it caught up, and there's nothing he could have done about it."
Shanahan added that the initial perception was that Bosa might be out for the season. Learning it was just an ankle injury provided a sense of relief.
"There's some high-ankle components," Shanahan continued. "Any time you get a major high-ankle, it's going to be a while. It's a pretty minor one, but anytime you're dealing with a high-ankle, it's never that minor. We're hoping for Week 1. We've got a good chance for it, but we can't guarantee that."
Shanahan said the goal is to have Bosa available for the 49ers' regular-season opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the team will be smart with the rookie's recovery.
"If he's not 100 percent ready for there, we want him for the long haul, not just for Week 1," Shanahan added. "We'll make a smart decision there. I know he's adamant that he's going to be ready for that day, and I hope he's right, but we'll see."
As for the concerns that Bosa might be injury-prone, Lynch said, "We don't feel he is injury-prone. He had a core-muscle deal his in last year of college, and he took that year and decided to get healthy. Yesterday, he had a big human being fall on his leg while he was engaged with someone else. Some of those things, that's football. You can't prevent that.
"We're thrilled with what we have in Nick Bosa. We're going to get him right, and he'll be a great player for a long time in this league."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Lynch below.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Shanahan below.
