49ers vs. Raiders: How many sacks will Nick Bosa get on Sunday?

Closing in on the single-season sack record, 49ers EDGE Nick Bosa hopes to tally a few more on Sunday against Jarrett Stidham and the scuffling Raiders.

No other player in the NFL has been as good at sacking opposing quarterbacks this season as San Francisco 49ers EDGE Nick Bosa.

The two-time Pro Bowler is already making an excellent case for the 2022 NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, and it’ll be a darned shame if he doesn’t get it.

Especially considering he already leads the league in sacks with 17.5 over 14 games played.

However, there’s another accolade Bosa has in his sights: the single-season sack record.

Of course, Hall of Famer Michael Strahan’s record of 22.5 stands just a bit taller than that of Pittsburgh Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt, who reached that mark of 22.5 with one extra game when the NFL added a 17th bout to the regular-season schedule in 2021.

That said, Bosa is a mere five sacks away from tying that mark and would need a mere half sack more to exceed it and stand alone in what’s an awfully elite group.

Can he do that when the Niners visit the 6-9 Las Vegas Raiders on New Year’s Day?

Nick Bosa, 49ers face a pretty good Raiders offensive line

Las Vegas might not have enjoyed the season it wanted under new head coach Josh McDaniels, who recently announced the team would sit veteran quarterback Derek Carr in favor of his younger backup, Jarrett Stidham, when San Francisco comes to town in Week 17.

While the Raiders have plenty of weaknesses, and the 49ers are more than a touchdown favorite for this game, the silver and black’s offensive line is actually pretty stout.

Prior to his benching, Carr had been sacked only 27 times this season, and hif 5.1 sack percentage is a 10-best stat figure among qualifying quarterbacks.

Additionally, according to Football Outsiders, Las Vegas owns the NFL’s sixth-best offensive line in pass protection. And, thanks to Pro Bowl running back Josh Jacobs, the Raiders’ O-line is No. 1 in run support, too.

For as dominant as Bosa and the Niners defensive line have been this season, they’re in for a challenge on Sunday.

Will Nick Bosa get a multi-sack game vs. Raiders?

As noted, Bosa needs five sacks to tie the single-season record held by Strahan and Watt, and San Francisco’s top draft pick from 2019 has two more games to do it.

That’ll mean at least one multi-sack performance, and Bosa already has five such outings on the year, including two sacks during the 49ers’ Week 16 win over the Washington Commanders.

However, the Raiders have only had four games this year in which they’ve given up at least three sacks, and there’s the lone Week 1 performance against the Los Angeles Chargers in which Carr was sacked five times.

Simply put, it’ll be difficult for Bosa and Co. to get to Stidham unless the fill-in starter simply finds himself serving as a statue within the pocket.

Bosa might be lucky enough to get two sacks, but it could be a tall order to merely record one.

San Francisco and Vegas kick off on Sunday, Jan. 1 at 4:05 p.m. ET from Allegiant Stadium.