Nick Bosa is poised to terrify rest of NFL (and he's set up to do just that)

Nick Bosa suffered a statistical regression in 2023, but a resurgence could once again turn the 49ers defense into an elite unit.

The San Francisco 49ers have become somewhat familiar with players holding out from offseason programs as they await lucrative contract extensions.

A year ago, All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa opted not to attend organized team activities, mandatory minicamp and even the bulk of training camp after securing a Defensive Player of the Year award in 2022 when he led the NFL with 18.5 sacks.

Eventually, the Niners made Bosa the highest-paid defensive player in league history, but even he admitted the absence hindered his 2023 efforts, which saw those sack totals drop down to 10.5.

Respectable. But not the kind of numbers indicative of someone who'd be tabbed as the NFL's best defensive player overall.

Long removed from the torn ACL that derailed his 2020 campaign, Bosa still made a substantial impact for a San Francisco defense amid its run to the Super Bowl a season ago.

However, looking ahead to 2024 and with a first-year defensive coordinator, Nick Sorensen, the 49ers would prefer to have as close a campaign as possible to when he secured that DPOY accolade.

And the context is there for him to do it.

Nick Bosa an active participant in 49ers' offseason activities

2023 wasn't necessarily an anomaly when it comes to Bosa skipping voluntary workouts. Sure, previously, he would arrive in time for training camp, but his workload was limited.

That's changed now.

Bosa is in attendance for voluntary OTAs, apparently at the request of head coach Kyle Shanahan, who told reporters it was good to have the four-time Pro Bowler around so early during the offseason:

"I love Nick being around, love him getting a chance to do football with the guys and stuff. ... And then this is the first year that it has kind of just been a totally normal year. And I think the one year that it was like that he came to a few OTAs, didn’t come to all of them, but if he didn’t just come to minicamp. So I’m glad he is here the first week and hopefully it’ll continue."

The chance to jell with both Sorensen and some new faces along the Niners' defensive line can only be a bonus.

Speaking of those new faces, Bosa arguably has the best pass-rushing support system he's ever had since joining the team as a rookie back in 2019.

Nick Bosa should be aided by 49ers' offseason additions

For years, San Francisco has tried to find Bosa a legitimate No. 2 pass-rushing partner from the edge. In 2019, the team traded for oft-injured pass-rusher Dee Ford, which worked when the latter was healthy, but that wasn't frequent enough.

In 2022, the 49ers used a second-round NFL Draft pick on edge Drake Jackson, who flashed promise but would fail to finish either of his first two seasons on the Niners' active roster. When Jackson went down with an injury in the middle of 2023, the team opted to trade for edge rushers Randy Gregory and Chase Young, who delivered merely modest impacts.

There have been reclamation projects, such as Clelin Ferrell, Arden Key and Samson Ebukam, all of whom put up decent numbers but mostly failed to provide the kind of significant impact that'd free Bosa up for more one-on-one pass-rushing opportunities.

Perhaps that changes in 2024.

Two of San Francisco's marquee free-agent pickups focused on getting its best defensive player more pass-rushing help, grabbing the still-promising-but-underdeveloped Yetur Gross-Matos while also adding a quality veteran in Leonard Floyd, whose 58 career sacks, including 10.5 a year ago with the Buffalo Bills, will help take pressure off Bosa.

If Bosa is being locked up by multiple blockers, that means less pressure on the proven Floyd. And if teams elect to focus on Floyd, it means more chances for Bosa and so on.

Combining the first "totally normal year," as Shanahan said, along with new faces in Floyd and Gross-Matos, it wouldn't be shocking at all to see Bosa creep much closer to the kind of production that earned him the Defensive Player of the Year award two seasons ago.

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