Nick Bosa Could Change Everything For The 49ers Next Week

After missing Week 5, Nick Bosa is poised for a strong Week 6 comeback, boosting the 49ers' defensive line against the Washington Commanders.

Nick Bosa is lining up to be back for the 49ers sooner rather than later.

Per Matt Maiocco, Bosa is “pretty darn likely” to return in Week 6 against the Washington Commanders on Monday Night Football. The Athletic’s Matt Barrows added later in the day that Bosa said he’s made a lot of progress with his calf injury and believes he could be ready for Week 7 in Atlanta, with Week 6 against Washington still in play as well.

Either way, the 49ers appear to be on track to get their star edge rusher back before their Week 8 bye.

The rest of San Francisco’s final injury report for Week 5 is a little less encouraging. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk, safety Marques Sigle, defensive lineman James Thompson, and Bosa were all ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks.

Cornerback Upton Stout and defensive end Mykel Williams are listed as questionable. Kyle Shanahan said the plan is to activate Williams from the PUP list on Saturday, and he sounded pleased with where the rookie is physically.

“He’s lost weight in a good way. I don’t know if he’s lost weight, but he’s leaner.

He’s had a good two weeks. He was good last week, and this week’s been even better.

Ready to get back out there on the field.”

Shanahan wouldn’t commit to how much Williams would play once he’s active. “When he’s out there, he’ll be a full-go.

We rotate our guys. Understand it’s his first game.

We gotta see how it goes.”

Stout’s status remains uncertain after he did not practice on Friday. Shanahan also said there was no setback when asked about Stout’s Thursday absence, which helps explain why he’s still listed as questionable.

One notable name not on the report: wide receiver Mike Evans. He missed Thursday’s practice with ribs, but his absence from the final injury report suggests the team likely gave him a maintenance day.

Seattle’s injury report brings its own problems. The Seahawks ruled out running back Zach Charbonnet, cornerback Julian Neal, and linebacker Chazz Surratt.

Charbonnet has yet to play this season, and Seattle’s ground game has struggled badly. The Seahawks are 29th in EPA per rush and 20th in rushing success rate. Missing a right guard doesn’t help, and neither does being down a first-round running back.

George Holani has handled more snaps than expected this season, but he was limited all week with multiple injury designations, including ribs and knee. That leaves Emanuel Wilson, a former Packers restricted free agent who Green Bay let go. Wilson has been volatile so far in Seattle, with 20.8% of his runs ending in zero or negative yardage, and the line has given him just 0.77 yards before contact.

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A few later selections have at least given the front office something to point to, with Upton Stout, Marques Sigle and Connor Colby all showing enough progress to work their way into starting roles. The bigger concern is at the top of the class, where the most highly regarded picks still do not offer the kind of steady contribution the 49ers were counting on, leaving this draft haul feeling far less settled than the team would have hoped. [Read more 🡒]