On Tuesday, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said his team was preparing to face Nick Bosa.
It’s a good thing, too. Now that Bosa has ended his holdout and agreed to a deal that will make him the league’s highest-paid defensive player, Pittsburgh is likely to see the reigning AP Defensive Player of the Year on Sunday.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters in his Wednesday press conference that he’s expecting Bosa to be ready to play in the season opener.
“I mean, there is [some] question because we haven’t seen him,” Shanahan said. “But I think you guys know how I’m talking. He’d have to have a beer belly and be out of shape or something, which that’s not in Bosa’s DNA.”
Shanahan noted he found out minutes before walking in for his presser that Bosa had agreed to his new contract. Having Bosa back will now almost feel like a bonus because after the two sides didn’t come to a deal last week, Shanahan figured the 49ers wouldn’t have their star edge rusher for at least Week 1.
But now Bosa is now en route to the Bay Area and should be on the practice field Thursday, if he’s not in the building in time to get something done on Wednesday.
The 49ers will decide how much Bosa will play in Sunday’s game based on what he shows in practices. But Shanahan is anticipating Bosa won’t take long to get acclimated.
“Nick is a smart player in our scheme,” Shanahan said. “It’s not the most complicated thing for the D-line, but he’s very good at it. So, if Nick’s been on his own completely — that’s why I don’t want to answer too much, I’ve got to see when he gets here. But we’ve gotten to know Nick pretty well and kind of expect when he gets here to look and act and be in the same spot he’s been since the day we met him.”
The reigning AP Defensive Player of the Year, Bosa led the league with 18.5 sacks and had 19 tackles for loss with 48 quarterback hits in 2022. Through 51 games in his first four seasons, he’s recorded 43.0 sacks, 56 TFLs, and 106 QB hits.
“I’m just glad we got it worked out on everyone’s side because we love Nick, I think he loves being here, and he’s definitely earned this and he’s going to earn it going forward, too,” Shanahan said.
