After Sunday's win over the Miami Dolphins at Levi's Stadium, it was announced rookie edge rusher Romello Height was having surgery on his hand. And while it wasn't a foregone conclusion he wouldn't play in Week 3, playing with a cast or club would make it more difficult.
Coming off a strong second game of his NFL career, this was not good news, especially because the Niners have struggled mightily to find someone to become a solid pass-rushing option opposite Nick Bosa.
And then, of course, injury was added to, well... injury when ESPN's Adam Schefter cleared up some earlier reporting by NBC Bay Area's Jennifer Lee Chan by indicating that Bosa himself was due to miss some time with a calf injury.
This leaves the Niners in a precarious position as it pertains to their pass rush, not to mention a season-ending knee injury for CJ West that further depleted a defensive tackle group that already lost Alfred Collins for the season.
During the post-game press conference after the win over Miami, head coach Kyle Shanahan mentioned his team reached out to Leonard Floyd, who was with the 49ers in 2024, after Sam Okuayinonu went down with his foot injury. With Height, James Thompson, and now Bosa adding to the injuries at defensive end, bringing the veteran Floyd back is a no-brainer.
49ers can't delay reuniting with Leonard Floyd after Nick Bosa injury
Sure, Floyd just turned age 34 earlier this month and is coming off a disappointing season for his hometown Atlanta Falcons in 2025, where he managed just 3.5 sacks. But no team is going to trade a player to the 49ers after just two weeks, so Shanahan and John Lynch will need to hold this thing together long enough for Bosa to return.
Even then, they'll likely need to make a splash trade to improve the interior and edge of the defensive lines, but for now, the name of the game is staying afloat in a difficult NFC West.
Floyd can provide that in the short term without being an immovable object if the 49ers do add to their roster closer to the trade deadline.
It isn't the solution that everyone wants to hear, but at this point, if Floyd will come, the Niners can't afford to push him away.
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