Rookie Bosa gets measured praise in 49ers’ camp
The praise poured in Saturday after 49ers rookie passrusher Nick Bosa was thoroughly impressive in his first trainingcamp practice.
Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said Bosa “had a chance to be great.” And Pro Bowl passrusher Dee Ford shook his head when asked about the No. 2 pick. “He looks good, man,” Ford said. However, the kind words were followed by let’snotgetcarriedaway comments.
“He’s just still a bobblehead running around,” Saleh said, noting the first practice wasn’t even in pads.
“As a young guy, you’ve got to stack the days,” Ford said, noting Bosa needed to show consistency.
On Monday, Bosa, 21, said he understood why coaches and teammates were hesitant to get too
gushy.
“Yeah, that’s one practice,” Bosa said. “You can’t compliment a rookie too much. I had a good day, but it’s going to take a lot of hard work to get to where I need to be.”
The good news for the 49ers is Bosa appears to have a chance to reach his destination. In Saturday’s trainingcamp debut, Bosa beat Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Staley on three passrush snaps using a beyondhisyears technique that served as a reminder that his brother, Joey, and dad, John, were also NFL firstround picks.
“He’s got those skills where he’s a technician,” right tackle Mike McGlinchey said. “He looks like this big powerful guy, but he’s smart enough to be able to use his hands and get down and bend around the corner.”
Bosa’s polished game really hasn’t been on display for nearly a year. He was sidelined for most of the offseason program with a hamstring injury and he missed the final 11 games of his final season at Ohio State with a coremuscle injury that required surgery.
The 49ers’ first padded practice of camp Monday marked the first time Bosa had donned shoulder pads since Sept. 15 when he was injured against TCU.
“It was a shock to me how long it’s been,” Bosa said. “I don’t think I’ve taken a break that long since I was 7 years old.”
Bosa appeared to have a welcometotheNFL moment Monday when he was sent tumbling by left tackle Shon Coleman on a running play midway through team drills. Bosa didn’t take another snap, but head coach Kyle Shanahan and Bosa said he wasn’t shaken up.
Bosa maintained he also made the tackle on the play in which he finished on his backside.
“I actually tagged up the running back and then Shon wanted to keep pushing me back,” Bosa said, “So I kind of let him have his moment.”
The 49ers are easing Bosa back into practice given his recent injury history, which is part of the reason he hasn’t had Round 2 of his matchup with Staley.
They already have become friendly combatants. On Monday, Staley, 34, who was given the day off, took Bosa off to the side during practice and they discussed some of the finer points of their positions.
“He’s played so many great pass rushers,” Bosa said. He talked about “just the things he notices that I can improve — or things that make it more difficult for him. And vice versa. There are even things I say to him and he’ll be like ‘Oh, cool. Never thought of that.’ It’s just back and forth.”
Added Bosa: “We’ve built a great relationship. … I’m not usually nice to offensive linemen, but it’s hard not to be nice to him. He’s such a good dude.”
Bosa’s style bears some resemblance to the boxer once known as “the baddest man on the planet.” Saleh said Bosa is like Mike Tyson in that he’s at his most dangerous in close quarters. Many outside pass rushers flourish when they create space between offensive tackles, but Bosa prizes proximity.
“He wants you close to him, as close as possible, and he just has an ability to flip his hips (and) get skinny,” Saleh said. “Most people need space to knock arms down and create angles for themselves. (It’s like) Mike Tyson, the closer you got, the more trouble you were in because he just loved to be in there tight.”
Not surprisingly, the compliment came with a caveat.
“On the flip side of that,” Saleh said, “he’s got to figure out how to win in space as a rookie.”