To say that San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa had an impressive rookie season would be an understatement. He racked up 47 tackles, nine sacks, two passes defensed, an interception, and a forced fumble during the regular season.
Bosa added four more sacks in the playoffs, increasing his season and career total to 13. He earned a Pro Bowl selection and set a rookie franchise record with 16 tackles for a loss. His 80 total pressures last year were the most recorded by a rookie in the Pro Football Focus era (since 2006).
The 22-year-old pass rusher's seven sacks to start last season tied for the second-most by a player in his first seven games since 1982, when the individual sack became an official statistic.
In February, Bosa was named the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Pro Football Focus shared the top grades of the highest-graded rookie defenders since 2017. Bosa was at the top of the list, thanks to an 89.8 overall grade this past season.
Highest-graded rookie seasons on defense 2017-2019
1. Nick Bosa, 2019 - 89.8
— PFF (@PFF) May 10, 2020
2. Tre'Davious White, 2017 - 89.4
3. Marcus Williams, 2017 - 89.2
4. Derwin James, 2018 - 87.8 pic.twitter.com/UkqXZWVkK4
It isn't just the past three seasons, though. Bosa actually owns the highest grade by a qualifying rookie defender since defensive lineman Aaron Donald earned a 90.2 grade during his 2014 rookie campaign. The 49ers' young pass rusher is in good company.
Bosa has already accomplished a lot in just one NFL season. He isn't satisfied with his accolades thus far, though, and plans to keep pushing himself to achieve more. The defender is training in Florida with his older brother, two-time Pro Bowler, and 2016 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, Joey Bosa of the Los Angeles Chargers.
"My expectations are always high," Bosa said last week. "I set my goals really high, and I've been achieving them. So, I'm just going to keep setting them high, and just keep working my butt off. I know the work that I'm putting in now is going to show up, and I think I'm going to be a much-smarter player next year.
"I'm just going to know how to approach my opponents much better, and I'm not going to waste rushes. I'm not going to make silly mistakes that I made last year, and hopefully enhance my game."