HEADLINES

Nick Bosa

Extra Points: Bosa, Cardinals, Mount, CBA

March 29th, 2019 at 8:40pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

For a long time toward the end of the college season, Ohio State pass-rusher Nick Bosa was the favorite to go first overall in the 2019 draft. But ever since Kliff Kingsbury got the head coaching job with the Cardinals, momentum has steadily shifted toward Kyler Murray. The current conventional wisdom is that Arizona is leaning toward taking Murray with the first pick, and shopping Josh Rosen. But they won’t admit it publicly, and there are reasons to believe they haven’t actually made up their minds yet.

The Cardinals are having dinner with Bosa tonight, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Bosa, the younger brother of Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa, dominated in the Big Ten. The Cardinals have been not so subtle with their interest in Murray, but it’s still possible that it’s all been a smokescreen to try and distract from their true intentions with the pick. If the Cardinals pass on him, Bosa is still a lock to go within the first couple of picks. We heard earlier this week that the 49ers were targeting him at second overall.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Free agent linebacker Deiontrez Mount has been accused of assaulting an Uber driver, as Stephanie Butzer of The Denver Channel writes. The incident, which took place early Sunday morning, left Mount with a bloodied nose when the Uber driver fought back. Mount was cited for simple assault and released, but this may not bode well for his stock on the open market. Mount missed the entire 2018 season with a torn Achilles and has just 12 career appearances to his credit between the Broncos, Colts and Titans.
  • Another day, more confirmation that we could be headed for a work stoppage or prolonged battle when a new CBA needs to be negotiated between the league and the NFLPA. There are “plenty of issues that will need to be resolved before a new labor deal can be finalized,” a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, who writes that it’s “highly unlikely” there will be a quick deal. In addition to the widely-known issues about contracts and player compensation, Florio writes that there are other more under the radar issues that will be sticking points, like “the extent to which the NFL wants to expand stadium credits under the current league-union revenue split, with the new Rams’ stadium expected to be” hotly debated. Florio also thinks it’ll be the owners, not necessarily the players, wielding the threat of a lockout in order to try and get a better deal.
  • In case you missed it, Bill Belichick could take over as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator after Greg Schiano stepped down.

West Notes: 49ers, Draft, Bosa, Broncos

March 24th, 2019 at 9:15pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The 49ers are in the midst of a pivotal offseason. They dealt with a mountain of injuries last year which excused their poor record, but with Jimmy Garoppolo back healthy next season expectations will be very high. Fortunately for San Francisco, they have the second overall pick at their disposal. For a long time, Ohio State pass-rusher Nick Bosa was the favorite to go first overall to the Cardinals. But with many now expecting Arizona to take Kyler Murray, Bosa could fall into San Francisco’s lap.

To that end, the “consensus opinion at this stage appears to be that Bosa will end up with the 49ers,” writes Matt Maioccio of NBC Sports. One NFL front office member told Maioccio at a recent pro day that the 49ers were going to take Bosa. The 49ers are in desperate need of outside pass-rush, so Bosa makes a lot of sense if he’s available. He would provide a massive boost to Kyle Shanahan’s defense.

Here’s more from the league’s western divisions:

  • The 49ers were expected to be players for Earl Thomas, but ultimately didn’t end up signing any of the big name safeties available. Safety was seemingly a position of need, but the 49ers opted not to make any splashes there. In a recent interview, 49ers GM John Lynch elaborated on the decision to more or less stay pat. “We feel good about our free safety depth. We feel we’re pretty well stocked there,” Lynch said, per Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports. Lynch did leave the door open for a future acquisition, saying “it’s not to say, if an opportunity presents itself, that we won’t go there, but we feel pretty good at our free safety spot.”
  • The Broncos may have traded for Joe Flacco, but that isn’t going to preclude them from looking for a quarterback of the future in the draft. Denver will host Kyler Murray, Drew Lock, Dwayne Haskins, and Daniel Jones on visits before next month’s draft, according to Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Broncos have the tenth pick in the draft and seem to be seriously considering taking a signal-caller then, although Murray and Haskins are likely to be off the board by the time they’re scheduled to pick.
  • The Broncos didn’t pick up their option on linebacker Brandon Marshall, and as such might need to add an inside linebacker to replace him. New head coach Vic Fangio said earlier today that “we like the guys we have but we’re always looking to add guys to all the personnel positions. … I do like Josey and Todd, but we’re always looking to get better” referring to second-year UDFA Josey Jewell and veteran Todd Davis, per Mike Klis of Denver 9News (Twitter link). The Broncos’ run defense has been very inconsistent the past couple of years, so it wouldn’t be surprising at all to see them add a run-stuffing linebacker either in free agency or through the draft.

49ers To Meet With Nick Bosa

March 20th, 2019 at 12:41pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers are set to have a dinner date with defensive end Nick Bosa on Wednesday night, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (Twitter link). With the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, the Niners may be in position to snag Bosa, who is regarded by many as the best overall talent in this year’s class. 

Of course, the Niners’ chances of having Bosa on the board hinges on the Cardinals’ plans at No. 1 . It has been widely reported that the Cardinals have set their sights on Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray, though their plans could still be in flux with five weeks to go before taking the podium.

The Niners already made major upgrades to their defense by acquiring edge rusher Dee Ford and Kwon Alexander earlier this month. Putting Bosa at one of the bookends would give the 49ers a massively improved front seven and a D to be reckoned with.

Despite playing in only three games last year, Bosa looks the part of a game-changer in the NFL, similar to older brother Joey Bosa. As a sophomore, Bosa registered 8.5 sacks and 16 total tackles for a loss and was named a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection. Even in his injury-shortened junior season, Bosa managed four sacks and six tackles for a loss.

Ohio State’s Nick Bosa To Participate In Combine Drills

February 25th, 2019 at 1:31pm CST by Zachary Links

Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa will participate in all drills at the NFL Draft combine, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link). Bosa’s final season was mostly lost to a core muscle injury, but he’s been healthy enough to practice for the past month, Rapoport hears. 

Bosa, of course, is in the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Despite playing in only three games last year, many believe that Bosa has the potential be a game-changer in the NFL, similar to older brother Joey Bosa. As a sophomore, Bosa registered 8.5 sacks and 16 total tackles for a loss and was named a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection. Even in his injury-shortened junior season, Bosa managed four sacks and six tackles for a loss in just three games.

At 6’4″ and 263 pounds, Bosa already has the size to compete at the next level. The Cardinals have other holes to address, but he could be the first player selected in April since Arizona could use some additional pass rushing ammo outside of Chandler Jones. If he can prove his health in Indianapolis, it’s hard to see Bosa slipping outside of the top 5.

The Cardinals, 49ers, Jets, Raiders, and Buccaneers are scheduled to be the first five teams up when the draft commences on Thursday, April 25.

Nick Bosa To Focus On Draft

October 16th, 2018 at 12:51pm CST by Zachary Links

Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa will not try to return to his team after rehabbing from a core muscle injury, the school announced on Tuesday. It’s a smart business decision from Bosa, who is widely projected as the top prospect in the 2019 NFL Draft. 

“I was hopeful that Nick would be able to return to play again for us,” head coach Urban Meyer said in a statement released by the school. “I know this was an extremely difficult and emotional decision for Nick and his family, and I wish him well as he moves on to get himself 100 percent healthy and ready for his next chapter. I want to thank Nick for the remarkable efforts he gave for this program. He is a first-class young man who we have been honored to coach.”

Bosa suffered the injury on Sept. 15 and had surgery less than a week later. In three games this year, Bosa had four sacks, six tackles for a loss, and was leading the Buckeyes in tackles overall.

Older brother Joey Bosa took a business-first stand with the Chargers as a rookie and wound up missing nearly all of the club’s offseason activities in the process. With that in mind, it’s not a surprise to hear that Nick playing it safe when it comes to his future prospects.