Getty Solomon Thomas #94 of the San Francisco 49ers.
2020 was a disastrous season for the 49ers when it came to player injuries. In Week 2, the Niners were on the road against taking the Jets when two of their top defensive stars went down at MetLife Stadium.
Defensive end Nick Bosa went down first with a torn ACL and just two plays later, his teammate Solomon Thomas followed in his footsteps.
Solomon recalled the moment to NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco.
“It was just crazy,” defensive tackle Solomon Thomas told NBC Sports Bay Area, “because Nick got hurt and goes down, and we were all pretty emotional.
“We were like, ‘OK, we’re going to play for Nick; we’re going to ball out; we love Nick.’”
That’s when Bosa was carted off just moments later.
“I’m walking to the X-ray room right as Nick’s walking out, and Nick goes, ‘No. No freakin’ way,’” Thomas said.
Solomon & Bosa’s Injury Update
Matt Barrows of The Athletic of was able to interview the surgeon, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who repaired both players knees for an update.
Though ElAttrache seemed optomistic, the news wasn’t exactly what anyone wanted to hear.
“They weren’t just straight-forward, isolated ACL injuries,” ElAttrache told Matt Barrows. “These were bigger injuries. But they’re both ahead of where ordinarily we’d expect them to be. And so they’re both going through their initial stages of functional performance training. So it’s looking very promising for both of those guys.”
Solomon also provided a bit optomism to Maiocco and said he and Bosa have been texting each other to keep going and expects them both to be ready by Week 1 of the 2021 season.
“Oh, definitely,” Thomas said “I have no doubt in my mind. There’s no reason to have us back for OTAs, but if you wanted us back for OTAs, I believe both of us are at a place where we could be back for that. But we’re athletes. We’re competitors. We want to be back as soon as possible.”
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Solomon Wants the NFL to Abolish Turf Fields
Solomon and Bosa weren’t the only ones injured last season at MetLife.
Niners running back Raheem Mostert sprained his MCL, Tevin Coleman hurt his knee too, and that was the start of Jimmy Garropolo‘s ankle sprain.
“The NFL needs to do a better job with turf,” Thomas said. “It should be all grass fields. We should take care of our players. Safety should be No. 1.”
Following several player injuries, the NFL and NLPA reviewed the field, the turf was approved by the NFL and said to have followed all of the league’s standards.
Still, the injuries continued as Niners tight end Jordan Reed went down with a knee sprain against the Giants at MetLife.
While the Giants and Jets haven’t made the switch to a grass field, stay tuned for a field makeover as players continue to fear for the health and safety.
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