The 49ers had the number 2 pick in the NFL draft on Thursday night. And after weeks of rampant speculation, the question about who they’d pick in round 1 was answered........ with a pretty obvious selection coming to fruition.
After the Cardinals took QB Kyler Murray number 1, the 49ers more or less rushed up to pick Nick Bosa (they made the pick pretty early in the clock in comparison to other picks and it’s possible the league milked the clock purposely a bit to give Murray his time).
Nick Bosa, a standout at Ohio State, was considered the best prospect of this draft for nearly a year now since last year’s draft ended. The pass-rusher put up some pretty prolific numbers at Ohio State and was utterly dominant.
Of course, his brother, Joey Bosa of the Chargers, was taken third overall a few years ago. And he has turned into one of the best there is on the edge in the NFL. Nick’s father was also a first round pick in the draft. The bloodline is very strong.
It’s not to say Bosa is not without his issues. Firstly, he sat out most of last year with an injury. However, most of him sitting out was to not kill his draft stock by chancing it. He could have easily returned to the Buckeyes last season but more so chose not to so he could be set up for his career going forward. But it is fair to wonder whether his durability could become a concern.
There is also the issue of him being very vocal on social media about his support of certain politicians. But I’m not concerned about this one bit and most people really shouldn’t be either.
The concern is in his character and the culture he brings. He has liked and shared posts on social media that have racist, sexist and homophobic remarks in them. Some of these are from way back in the past where they shouldn’t matter but not all of them.
Now Bosa himself said he has grown up and learned a lot the last few months. He also has since decided to keep a lot of things off social media. His character will be something I watch going forward because sometimes stuff like that can eat up a talented player. I hope he can handle himself. The 49ers are giving him a blank slate in San Francisco, and I think he deserves that. His new teammates also seem very excited about him coming aboard, so it doesn’t seem like his presence will divide a locker room at all.
But back to what he does best: playing football. As a football player, he is just what the 49ers were looking for and they have to feel incredibly blessed that he fell to them with the Cardinals taking a second straight quarterback in the top 10, a quarterback that first had to quit baseball to even get drafted in the NFL. The 49ers said they locked onto Nick Bosa for months throughout this process and wound up coming away with their guy.
He is a pass-rusher they can put on the edge with Dee Ford handling the other edge. That is a dynamic duo. Bosa can get to the quarterback, but also has great run defending skills. Dee Ford’s only job is getting to the quarterback and isn’t as strong against the run. Having that presence on an edge will cause havoc.
This havoc increases when it is realized that teams will still have to account for DeForest Buckner on the interior. Even if an offensive line wants to try to double team one of these guys, the other two will be one on one, which could be disastrous for opposing offenses. And you add in Sheldon Day, DJ Jones, Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas into the mix on the line in rotation, this defensive line begins to look incredibly tough to defend. And that’s all before you get to having to deal with the possibility of second level pressure from linebackers as well. The 49ers want pressure to come in waves, and that’s exactly what they are building with this group.
The additions of Ford and Bosa turns the 49ers iffy pass-rush into suddenly one of the potentially best pass-rushing groups in all of the NFL that offensive lines will have problems with.
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