Sometimes you can make mid-season moves that bolster your roster and turn around your fortunes. Other times you can't. The San Francisco 49ers are about to find that out the hard way.
The 49ers are now without Nick Bosa for the rest of the year, and there really is no way for the team to replace Bosa's type of production at this point in the season. Bosa has been, historically, one of the best players in the league since his arrival with the Niners. Now, San Francisco must carry on without arguably its best defensive player.
49ers Will Struggle to Replace Nick Bosa's Production
Sure, the 49ers can go the Dallas Cowboys route and try to land a free agent after the first few weeks of the season. The Cowboys are trying to replace Micah Parsons after trading their All-Pro linebacker to the Green Bay Packers by bringing in Jadeveon Clowney. It's a move with a low ceiling at best, as Parsons is one of the five best pass-rushers in the game today, and Clowney has never had a season with double-digit sacks.
While Clowney may lift the floor of the Cowboys, he doesn't raise the ceiling of the team's pass-rush by a whole lot. That's sadly the type of player the 49ers would have to settle for if they were to pursue a free agent at this point in the season, as most top names are long gone. Any potential replacement would only bring a fraction of what Bosa brings to the table, especially after racking up 64.5 sacks, five Pro Bowl nods, and a 2022 AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year win.
Bosa was tied for the team lead in sacks with two, matching fellow defensive end Bryce Huff. Now, with Bosa out, the team loses its best defensive linemen and its best pass-rusher. Without him, the team will now have to rely heavily on Huff, who's been playing a rotational spot for the team, while also hoping that rookie Mykel Williams improves as the season goes on.
So far, Huff owns the fifth-best Pro Football Focus pass rush grade among edge defenders (90.1), whereas Williams ranks 72nd (59.7).
Although Huff is soaring, his first-year counterpart isn't playing at a high level just yet, and with Bosa out, the youngster is going to have to improve on the job faster than expected if the team hopes to keep pace with the rest of the NFC West and the conference as a whole. For the 49ers, sticking with the talent they have is the only path forward, even if it limits their upside.
There simply isn't a viable way to replace an All-Pro mid-way through the season. Trying to do so will just tie up general manager John Lynch's hands and waste money in the process. There isn't a player good enough right now on the market that it makes sense for the 49ers to waste capital on without overpaying.
Besides, blowing up the franchise's draft assets isn't the right path forward. All for what? A year or two of moderate production? A player that's as good as Bosa isn't going to be available, and if they somehow were, they would impact the salary cap too much while nuking the team's future.
Sadly, the 49ers will just have to move forward with their team as is, and hope that guys like Williams and Huff can step up and replace their DPOY-caliber teammate.