After missing the majority of the 2025 NFL season due to a torn ACL injury, 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa is on pace to make his long-awaited return to the field in 2026.
At only 28 years old, Bosa should still be at the peak of his game, but after already sustaining two ACL injuries early in his professional career, some people might be questioning how the former NFL Defensive Player of the Year will look once he plays in his first game since Week 3 of the 2025 season.
Based on a survey from NFL executives, coaches and scouts, ESPN recently released a ranking of the top NFL edge rushers for 2026 in which Bosa was listed as the No. 8 best defensive end.
“Several voters acknowledged that Bosa would still be in their top five if healthy,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote.
“’He’s got the best speed-to-power move in the NFL,’ an NFL personnel evaluator said. ‘He gets offensive tackles on their heels, and he pushes right through them.’”
In last year’s ranking, Bosa was listed at No. 5, and his highest placement throughout his career so far is at No. 3. The Los Angeles Rams’ Myles Garrett, the Green Bay Packers’ Micah Parsons and the Houston Texans’ Will Anderson Jr. round up the top three edge rushers this year.
Prior to suffering an ACL injury in 2025, Bosa was having a solid start to the season, recording two sacks and averaging a 21.6 percent pass rush win rate.
In his seven-year NFL journey so far, the one-time All-Pro selection has collected 74.5 total sacks in both the regular season and the playoffs, placing him in the top five list of players with the most career sacks in 49ers franchise history.
The five-time Pro Bowl selection also posted back-to-back 15-sack seasons with 15.5 in 2021 and 18.5 in 2022.
With second-year defensive end Mykel Williams also set to return from an ACL injury in the upcoming season and with the acquisition of veteran defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa, Bosa and San Francisco’s front-four could turn things around from a disappointing 2025 season as a group that finished last in the NFL in team sacks.
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