San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan gave a detailed account Friday of exactly how Nick Bosa suffered his calf injury, one that’s now added to a pattern the coach described as genuinely unusual.
How Bosa’s Injury Happened
According to Kyle Posey of Niners Nation, Shanahan explained that Bosa got hurt doing high knees during his own personal warmup routine, well before the team’s official stretch even began. “He does his warm-up deal, right before walkthrough. He does his own warm-up on the side,” Shanahan said. “Just got his calf doing it.” Shanahan added that the injury happened shortly before practice started.
Shanahan didn’t commit to a firm recovery timeline, but offered a rough estimate when pressed on whether Bosa could miss months. “Guessing around a few weeks,” Shanahan said, adding that the injury isn’t expected to have any lasting impact.
A Difficult Stretch for the 49ers at Defensive Line
Shanahan didn’t shy away from acknowledging just how unusual this run of injuries has been, particularly along the defensive line. When asked if the situation felt like Groundhog Day, Shanahan didn’t hold back. “Losing Bosa was rough yesterday,” he said. “Losing 6 out of the 10 d-linemen in the last two weeks that made our team is a little unusual. Don’t think I’ve been a part of that. That has been different.” That total leaves San Francisco with barely enough healthy bodies to field a starting group and a couple of depth pieces at the position.
Whether Bosa lands on injured reserve remains an open question the team is still working through. “It’s a discussion,” Shanahan said. “He’s right there at that point, along with a couple of other guys that are in the same boat. Because of the number we have on it, we won’t be able to do all of them. So we’ve gotta decide. We’re just trying to guess which ones go longer, which ones have the chances of being sooner. It’s just a guess. They’re all close in the same boat, so gotta decide that tomorrow at 1.” If Bosa avoids IR, it would be a positive signal that his injury likely won’t cost him the mandatory four-game minimum. Shanahan sounded confident regardless that Bosa will return to the field at some point this season. “I know he was bummed out, but he’ll be back,” Shanahan said.
Friday’s Full Injury Report
The 49ers’ Friday practice report showed Mike Evans as a full participant, a promising sign for his availability against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3, though he remains officially listed as questionable with a hip injury. Rookie Romello Height, who underwent hand surgery earlier in the week after breaking it, was ruled out for Sunday, an outcome that was largely expected given the severity of the injury. Bosa, James Thompson Jr. (ankle) and Demarcus Robinson (ankle) were the only other players held out of Friday’s session, all absences that had already been anticipated heading into the day.
49ers’ Kyle Shanahan Reveals Bizarre Cause of Nick Bosa Injury