The San Francisco 49ers are staring down a serious defensive line crisis right now, with star pass rusher Nick Bosa officially sidelined with a calf injury that popped up during his warm-up. Head coach Kyle Shanahan dropped the news, making it clear this isn’t just a minor tweak, and the team is grappling with an “unusual” number of injuries across their defensive front. Shanahan even said losing Bosa yesterday was “rough,” which tells you everything you need to know about the impact.
The D-Line Is Banged Up, And It’s Getting Crazy
Shanahan isn’t holding back, telling reporters that losing “6 out of the 10 d-linemen in the last two weeks that made our team is a little unusual.” That’s a staggering number. He added, “Don’t think I’ve been a part of that. That has been different.” This isn’t just depth pieces either; it’s “enough players to start and two depth pieces in two games at one position.” Talk about a brutal stretch. On top of Bosa’s calf, rookie pass rusher Romello Height is out for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals after having hand surgery earlier this week for a broken hand. Defensive tackle James Thompson Jr. also missed practice with an ankle issue, and wide receiver Demarcus Robinson is out with an ankle problem too. It’s a full-on injury report. The only good news on that front is that wide receiver Mike Evans practiced on Friday despite a hip injury, so his questionable status for Week 3 sounds more promising.
Bosa’s Bizarre Injury And An IR Headache
So, how did Bosa get hurt? Shanahan explained it was a weird one: Bosa was doing high knees during his personal warm-up routine, right before the team’s official stretch and walkthrough, and “just got his calf doing it.” He literally pulled his calf warming up. That’s a frustrating way to lose a top-tier player. Shanahan didn’t give a firm timeline, but his “guessing around a few weeks” estimate is way better than the “months” some reporters were asking about. Shanahan also said the injury isn’t expected to impact Bosa long-term, and he sounds confident Bosa will play again this season, saying, “I know he was bummed out, but he’ll be back.”
The biggest decision looming for the 49ers is whether to place Bosa on injured reserve. Shanahan confirmed it’s “a discussion” and that Bosa is “right there at that point, along with a couple of other guys that are in the same boat.” The tricky part? They have so many guys banged up they won’t be able to put everyone on IR. They have to decide by 1 PM tomorrow, guessing “which ones go longer, which ones have the chances of being sooner.” If Bosa somehow avoids IR, that’s a huge win, meaning he’d miss less than the minimum four games.
The 49ers face the Arizona Cardinals this Sunday, and this depleted defensive line will be tested immediately. All eyes will be on that 1 PM decision tomorrow regarding Bosa’s IR status. Shanahan’s hoping for just a “few weeks,” but that IR decision will tell us a lot about how confident they truly are.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Niners Nation.
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