49ers 2020 ‘Who Is?’ series: Nick Bosa is Niners’ best defender
By Peter Panacy
49ers EDGE Nick Bosa is a cornerstone piece to build around in 2020 and beyond
The San Francisco 49ers boasted one of the league’s top defense in 2019, and Nick Bosa was a major reason behind that surge.
Entering 2020, the second-year edge rusher now emerges as this unit’s top player.
This, primarily due to the Niners parting ways with their previous best player on that side of the ball, Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, by sending him to the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for the No. 13 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. San Francisco subsequently turned that pick into the selection of Buckner’s replacement, South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw.
Kinlaw’s arrow should be pointing up. But Bosa’s arrow has already hit a massive high.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft put together a season of seasons for the 49ers’ upstart defense last season. It was almost a gift the top-drafting Arizona Cardinals passed on Bosa for quarterback Kyler Murray, allowing the Niners the steal of Bosa.
Bosa joined a star-studded defensive line, which included Buckner and fellow EDGE Dee Ford, and capped off his rookie campaign with nine sacks en route to a rookie Pro Bowl nod of his own:
| Game | Game | Def | Def | Def | Def | Def | Fumb | Fumb | Fumb | Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | G | GS | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | Sk | Comb | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits |
| 2019* | 22 | SFO | 16 | 14 | 1 | 46 | 0 | 46 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9.0 | 47 | 32 | 15 | 16 | 25 |
| Care | Care | 16 | 14 | 1 | 46 | 0 | 46 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9.0 | 47 | 32 | 15 | 16 | 25 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 6/8/2020.
This also propelled Bosa to Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, making the EDGE a prolific player San Francisco can now build its defense around for years to come.
But what’s the trajectory for Bosa in year two of his professional career? Are there reasons why he can get better? And if there are causes for regression, what would those be?
Niner Noise takes a look at these questions in the next installment of our annual “Who Is?” series.