Transformative. How many players can completely change a team just by stepping on the field? Defensive end Nick Bosa did just that for the 49ers in 2019. For years 49ers fans would watch opposing quarterbacks enjoy a comfortable pocket to pass from as they carved up the 49ers secondary. Thanks to the #2 overall pick in the 2019 draft, the opposing quarterbacks weren't afforded that luxury.
Bosa won the 2019 Associated Press Rookie of the year award and there was a point in the season when he was contending for Defensive Player of the Year as well. Offenses struggled to stop Bosa as his supreme technique, indefatigable effort and superb athleticism dominated the field on Sundays. Pro Football Focus actually noted Nick Bosa broke a rookie record with 80 total pressures during the regular season. When Bosa wasn't sacking QBs he was terrorizing them into hurried throws and bad decisions. No one player meant more to the 49ers defense than Nick Bosa did in 2019, and he's just getting started.
Without Nick Bosa the 49ers would not have been a Super Bowl team. His arrival changed this team fundamentally. Going into the future with Nick Bosa coming off the edge will be a beautiful sight for 49ers fans. Nick Bosa is the franchise player, the man who cannot be replaced.
2019 Performance
During his rookie season Nick Bosa recorded 47 tackles, 9 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumbles recovered and 1 interception. As eye popping as those statistics are, they do not come close to telling the story of how impactful Bosa was on the field. Add his post season numbers of 19 tackles and 4 sacks to his regular season numbers and it is only more impressive. Pro Football Focus graded Bosa out at an 86.7. Players who received a similar grade were New Orleans ED Cameron Jordan (87.6) and Cleveland ED Myles Garrett (86.5),
2020 Cost
Bosa comes with a $7.6 million cap hit in 2020. Money is no issue with Bosa, as he is on a rookie contract and provides an invaluable service to the San Francisco 49ers.
Future Outlook
Bosa may be the very best young pass rusher in the game and he is here to stay. He appears to be a generational talent that the 49ers lucked into when QB Jimmy Garoppolo went down to a torn ACL in 2018, giving them the #2 overall draft pick. As the clock wound down on the 49ers in Super Bowl 54, the image of Nick Bosa crying on the sideline while being consoled by his teammates will forever live vividly in the minds of 49ers fans. While Bosa should be entrenched in red & gold for the majority of his career, it is important that the 49ers surround him with talent in the coming years. If they do so, this 49ers defense will be one of the best in the league for the foreseeable future. Thank you, Nick Bosa.