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Nick Bosa injury update: 49ers DE opens up after attending Wednesday's practice; 'wears on you'
Nick Bosa explained the frustration of repeatedly expecting to return before having to resume rehabilitation and workouts.
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Nick Bosa returned to San Francisco 49ers practice Wednesday after nearly a month away, putting him on track to potentially feature in next week’s season opener against the Los Angeles Rams in Australia.
Bosa details challenging road back to practice
The star pass rusher reflected on how difficult it had been to remain sidelined for such an extended period.
Describing his return to the field, Bosa said, "It was a really cool, really good moment. I mean, if every day of football practice, you're this happy, I mean it'd be an easy job,"
He then explained the frustration of repeatedly expecting to return before having to resume rehabilitation and workouts.
“But no, it's just you put in so much work, you rehab for so long, and then you think you're coming back, and then you're not, and then you're back to doing workouts every day, and it's just monotonous and kind of wears on you,” the 49ers defensive end added.
Is Bosa available for Week 1 against the Rams?
Asked whether he now feels confident about being ready for Week 1, Bosa sounded encouraged by his first practice back and replied, "After today, yeah, that was pretty good."
Also read | Why is Isiah Pacheco placed on IR? How his absence impacts the Lions’ RB depth chart
The 49ers will be hoping Bosa can stay healthy and provide a much-needed boost to a pass rush that recorded an NFL-low 20 sacks last season.
Bosa works toward season opener
The 28-year-old suffered a torn ACL in Week 3 and entered training camp on the active roster.
However, Bosa did not take part in team drills before being pulled from on-field work in early August. He is now working his way back as he attempts to be ready for the season opener.
Reflecting on his recovery, Bosa said, “I'm not going to go back too far, because every recovery there's ups and downs, but it was a long road.... I kind of ramped it a little too fast with the football stuff a month ago.
“It kind of told me to back off so I’ve just been trying to get it as strong and as confident in myself. As confident as I can where I could rip the Band-aid off and go to team stuff today," he elaborated.
Bosa's impressive production despite injuries
When healthy, Bosa has consistently been among the NFL's most dominant pass rushers. He has recorded at least nine sacks in each of the five seasons when he avoided an injury during the opening month.
Since being selected second overall in the 2019 draft, Bosa has earned Pro Bowl honors in all five of his healthy seasons. He also captured the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year award in 2022 after leading the league with 18½ sacks.
Despite missing nearly two full seasons because of injuries, Bosa has accumulated 74½ sacks across the regular season and playoffs since entering the league.
With inputs from AP report.
