SANTA CLARA — The 49ers beat the Cardinals in Sunday’s home opener largely without Nick Bosa. They’ll attempt to do the same every week for the rest of this season.
Bosa, three years removed from winning NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors, sustained a clear tear of the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and will require season-ending reconstructive surgery, ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported.
The 49ers (3-0) have yet to confirm Bosa’s diagnosis after Monday morning’s exams. Coach Kyle Shanahan is scheduled to address the media in an afternoon conference call.
Shanahan said after Sunday’s 16-15 win that initial tests on Bosa’s ACL did not indicate it was torn, but Shanahan added: “We can’t rule anything out.”
Bosa knew something was amiss, probably because he had previously endured this injury. He was lost to a torn ACL in his left knee two games into the 2020 season, after he was the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2019 as the No. 2 overall pick. Bosa previously tore the ACL in his right knee his senior year at St. Thomas Aquinas High (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) before going off to Ohio State.
Bosa got injured on a third-down pass rush late in the first quarter of Sunday’s victory. His right knee did not seem to draw a noticeable impact, even though he eventually was floored on a double-team block. Upon limping to the 49ers’ sideline, he was examined on his back by medical staff, then gave a thumbs-down signal to his parents in a suite as he headed into the sideline medical tent. Bosa eventually walked to the locker room before halftime and left with his parents after the game.
“Anytime you lose a guy like Nick, it’s a real buzzkill,” left tackle Trent Williams said after the game. “… It’s cliché to say it’s a next-man-up league. When you lose a guy like that, you need three or four guys to come and fill those shoes. We’ve got the depth. We’ve got the youth. So hopefully they can continue to improve.”
Bosa, a seventh-year veteran, was the only starting defensive lineman retained this past offseason as the 49ers poured draft resources into a revamped unit that includes rookies Mykel Williams (first round), Alfred Collins (second round) and C.J. West (fourth round).
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Bryce Huff, acquired in a June trade from the Philadelphia Eagles, has complemented Bosa well as the other pass-rushing end, but the 49ers also will lean more on Sam Okuayinonu and Yetur Gross-Matos, the latter of whom has rarely practiced because of a knee injury dating to the 2024 preseason. Trevis Gipson, a sixth-year veteran, and former 49ers draft pick Robert Beal Jr. are on the practice squad.
“I feel like it was the whole group, like the whole D-line room said we’ve got to step it up because Bosa is a great player for us and he holds a heavy load,” Williams said of Sunday’s winning formula. “So when we lose him, everybody has got to raise their game.”
Added Shanahan: “Anytime you lose your best player, guys are disappointed and stuff, but you can’t sit there and feel sorry for yourself. I mean, it’s tough enough to play in this League and you’ve got to be ready. I didn’t sense anything from the guys at all. You didn’t hear anyone talking. Guys had to step it up and it looked like the guys did.”
Three 49ers players are coming off ACL reconstruction: wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, safety Malik Mustapha and quarterback Kurtis Rourke. All are eligible to resume practicing after the 49ers’ next game, Sunday against Jacksonville, although it’s more likely that the earliest debut would come from Brandon Aiyuk in Week 6 at Tampa Bay, following a Thursday night, Oct. 2 game at the Los Angeles Rams.
Bosa recorded a sack in each of the 49ers’ first two games, and his strip-sack fumble recovery sealed the 49ers’ season-opening win at Seattle.
Financially, Bosa signed in 2023 what then was the richest contract for a non-quarterback (five years, $170 million). That contract runs through 2028, and Bosa counts $20.4 million against this season’s salary cap, behind only left tackle Trent Williams ($21.1 milion).
Bosa’s injury is the biggest amid a wave this season for the 49ers, who saw quarterback Brock Purdy (toe, left shoulder) and George Kittle (hamstring) get hurt in the opener. Wide receiver Jauan Jennings (ankle), guard Ben Bartch (high-ankle sprain) and offensive tackle Spencer Burford (knee) got hurt in the Week 2 win at New Orleans.
Purdy might return next Sunday against Jacksonville, seeing how he’s progressed while the 49ers turned the past two games to Mac Jones, who aggravated a knee sprain Sunday and might be unavailable.
Kittle is on Injured Reserve for at least two more games. Burford and Bartch last week went on Injured Reserve, where the 49ers put eight players during training camp, including running back Patrick Taylor Jr.
Should the 49ers scour around the league for defensive end, the trade deadline is Nov. 4, and likely the most popular player will be Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson, who is playing on a one-year, $29 million deal after failing to secure a multi-year extension prior to the season.
