Background and career
Nicholas John Bosa (; born October 23, 1997) is an American professional football defensive end for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes and was selected second overall by the 49ers in the 2019 NFL draft. Bosa was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and helped his team reach Super Bowl LIV. In 2022, he won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. He is the son of former NFL defensive end John Bosa and younger brother of current NFL defensive end Joey Bosa.
Bosa attended St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he was a four-year starter and a multi-year first-team all-state player. He was a five-star recruit and was ranked among the best players in his class. Bosa committed to Ohio State University to play college football.
Bosa played in all 13 games as a true freshman at Ohio State in 2016, recording 29 tackles, seven of which were for a loss, and five sacks. His season would come to a close in a loss to Clemson in the College Football Playoff. As a sophomore, Bosa became the starting defensive end for the Buckeyes in seven games. He was named a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten Conference and the Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year for his 32 total tackles (14.5 for a loss) and a team leading seven sacks. Bosa also had two pass breakups, eight quarterback hurries, and a blocked kick. On September 1, 2018, against Oregon State, Bosa had two sacks and a one-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown in the 77–31 victory. On September 20, it was reported that Bosa underwent core muscle surgery, ruling him out indefinitely. On October 16, Bosa announced that he was withdrawing from Ohio State for the rest of the season. After the season, Bosa decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 2019 NFL draft.
Coming out of Ohio State, Bosa was projected to be the first overall pick in the draft by a majority of analysts and scouts. Bosa received an invitation to the NFL Scouting Combine as one of the top prospects at the draft. He completed all of the required combine drills and positional drills except for the 10-yard and 20-yard split. Bosa met and interviewed with eight NFL teams at the combine, including the Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets, New York Giants, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A week before the draft, Bosa was criticized by some due to his political beliefs and controversial tweets, such as calling Colin Kaepernick a "clown", expressing support for U.S. president Donald Trump, and "liking" a post on Instagram that included racial and homophobic slurs as hashtags.
Bosa was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the first round with the second overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft. On July 25, 2019, Bosa signed a four-year deal with the 49ers worth $33.5 million featuring a $22.5 million signing bonus and a fifth-year option. Bosa made his NFL debut in the season-opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and made three tackles and a sack in the 31–17 road victory. During a Week 5 31–3 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football, Bosa recorded four tackles and sacked Baker Mayfield twice, one of which resulted in a fumble. Bosa was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance. Two weeks later against the Washington Redskins, Bosa had seven tackles and a sack in the 9–0 shoutout road victory. In the next game against the Carolina Panthers, Bosa sacked Kyle Allen thrice and recorded his first career interception along with four tackles and a pass deflection during the 51–13 victory. Bosa was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance along with his brother Joey, who was voted AFC Defensive Player of the Week. The next day, Bosa was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Month for his play in October. During a Week 10 27–24 overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football, Bosa had a season-high eight combined tackles (three solo). Two weeks later against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football, he recorded three tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery in the 37–8 victory. During Week 14 against the New Orleans Saints, Bosa had two tackles and a pass deflection in the narrow 48–46 road victory. In the next game against the Atlanta Falcons, he had three tackles and a sack during the 29–22 loss. Bosa finished his rookie year with 47 combined tackles (32 solo), nine sacks, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries, two pass deflections, and an interception in 16 games and 14 starts. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team. The 49ers finished atop the NFC West with a 13–3 record and qualified for the playoffs as the #1-seed. In the Divisional Round against the Minnesota Vikings, Bosa recorded six tackles, a pass deflection, and sacked Kirk Cousins twice during the 27–10 victory. During the NFC Championship Game against the Green Bay Packers, Bosa had four tackles and sacked Aaron Rodgers once in the 37–20 victory as the 49ers advanced to Super Bowl LIV. At the NFL Honors, Bosa won the AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, which his father accepted on his behalf due to Bosa being at the Super Bowl in Miami. In the Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs, he recorded five tackles, a pass deflection, and a strip sack on Patrick Mahomes during the 31–20 loss. Bosa was ranked 17th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2020.
Bosa began the season recording six tackles and a forced fumble in the season-opening 24–20 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. However, in the next game against the New York Jets, Bosa left the eventual 31–13 road victory in the first quarter with a knee injury. It was later revealed that he tore his ACL, prematurely ending his season. Bosa was placed on injured reserve on September 23, 2020. During his rehab, Bosa hired a private chef and took on a strict, protein-heavy diet as part of his recovery.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
