Why Michael Lombardi believes deal between 49ers, Nick Bosa is close

Could Nick Bosa be on the practice field with his teammates on Wednesday, the first of three consecutive days of practices leading to the San Francisco 49ers' regular-season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers? Maybe he won't, but one former NFL executive believes a deal between Bosa and the 49ers might be close.

The real question is: Is the deal close enough to make the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year available for Week 1?

While NFL insider Ian Rapoport says, "This is a hard contract to do," Michael Lombardi believes the opposite. Pat McAfee asked Lombardi if there is truth to the rumors of a deal between the 49ers and Bosa being close.

"I think the Bosa deal [rumors are] real because it's not a hard contract to do," Lombardi responded. "The conversation centers on a couple of factors. Are we going to pay you more than [Rams DT] Aaron Donald? The contract is old. Aaron Donald's contract was done a while ago, and it's still $7 million higher than the nearest defensive tackle, right?

"[Jets DT] Quinnen Williams' deal didn't even come close to where Donald is. Williams isn't the same player. He's great, but he's not Aaron Donald. However, that being said, it's kind of an older contract.

"So the Bosa deal is, look, are we going to pay you more? We know [Steelers edge] T.J. Watt's deal came in at $28 million. We know [Browns DE] Myles Garrett's deal is at [$25 million]. Can we settle this at 31? Is it 30? Is it 29? And then you get into the guarantee. T.J. got $80 million, fully guaranteed. Bosa is certainly going to get over 100."

Lombardi suggested that injuries could be a factor in the negotiations. However, he didn't specifically indicate that aspect might be part of the holdup. Bosa missed most of the 2020 season after suffering a torn ACL in the 49ers' second game. But the pass rusher has been available for at least 16 games in his other three seasons, and is consistently one of the team's best players.

"I fully expect the Bosa [deal] to get done," Lombardi added. "I have expected this for a while. It's not a hard contract to do. It's how much are they going to get close to Donald, or are they going over Donald?"