Nick Bosa is back in the mix for Week 1, and the 49ers are getting their star pass rusher at just the right time.
San Francisco arrived in Melbourne, Australia, on Friday ahead of its regular-season opener against the Los Angeles Rams, but the comeback story started a little earlier. Two days before Bosa made the trip, he took part in his first practice after tearing his ACL in the Week 3 game of the 2025 NFL season against the Cardinals.
Bosa said Wednesday that he had received the green light for the 49ers’ Week 1 game, and he marked the moment on Thursday with an Instagram post that included a candid gameday photo of himself. The comments quickly filled up, including a message from his mom, Cheryl, who made her feelings plain:
“So happy, son!!! Love you so much!”
Fred Warner and Kyle Juszczyk also chimed in.
“Siiiiicccckkk,” Warner wrote.
“Go time!” Juszczyk added.
After the 49ers’ training session, Bosa spoke to reporters at NBC Sports Bay Area about the grind of getting back and the “long road” that led him here. He described the recovery process in blunt terms:
“It was a long road. There was some stuff I dealt with, with that patellar tendon, and I kind of ramped it a little too fast with the football stuff a month ago or whatever it was.
And that kind of told me to back off. I’ve been trying to get it as strong, and myself as confident as I can, to where I can rip the Band-Aid off and go do team stuff today.”
Bosa also weighed in on the Rams’ travel setup, since Los Angeles will head to Melbourne just one day before kickoff. Talking to CBS Sports reporter Nick Avila, he said he’d be uneasy about that kind of schedule.
“I couldn’t imagine. Just because the longest flight I ever took was from Florida out here. So, six hours is the most I’ve done, so I don’t really know how this is going to be on my body, so I’d be pretty nervous about just going the day before,” Bosa said.
For San Francisco, getting Bosa back into the lineup would be a major boost. The 49ers have four scheduled practices before the opener, and all eyes will be on how quickly he settles back in with his teammates.
In Other News...
49ers Suddenly Have One Receiver Question They Can't Ignore
San Franciscos receiver room has gone from a position of strength to a real offseason concern, with injuries stacking up around Ricky Pearsall and Christian Kirk and leaving the 49ers looking thinner than expected as they head toward the 2026 season. For a team that has leaned on explosive pass-catching talent to keep its offense on schedule, the current depth chart now looks like an area that needs attention, not just monitoring.
One name already circulating in the discussion is Buffalos Keon Coleman, a young receiver who has not yet carved out a major role with the Bills. A trade would fit the kind of swing the 49ers have not been shy about exploring when they think a roster can be strengthened, but for now it remains only a possibility, with no move officially on the books and the uncertainty around the receiver group still hanging over the rest of the offseason. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Evans Debut Leaves 49ers With A Tough Week 1 Call
The 49ers got to Australia a week early to settle in for their Week 1 meeting with the Rams, and the extra time has also sharpened the attention on Mike Evans. The recent free agent signing has missed significant training camp time because of injuries, but he is expected to be available when the season opens, giving San Francisco one more moving part to sort through before the first snap.
How the 49ers deploy him is the real question. With so much time lost in camp, there is a natural case for easing Evans in with limited snaps and a lighter load, especially if the team wants to be careful with his health, but there is also a clear appeal to making him a more prominent piece of the offense right away. However the staff handles it, Evans gives the 49ers a Week 1 decision that is about more than just availability. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Just Put One Fringe Roster Battle Under A Brighter Light
The 49ers latest roster shuffle put a little more spotlight on the bottom of the tight end group, with Brayden Willis waived to clear space for long snapper Jon Weeks, who was promoted from the practice squad. San Francisco also signed Khalid Kareem and moved Sam Okuayinonu to injured reserve, a reminder that the back end of the roster is still very much in motion as the team keeps sorting out depth and special teams pieces.
Willis departure naturally sharpens the view on the fringe competition around him, including rookie Bryson Eason, as the 49ers continue trimming and reshaping the roster to fit immediate needs. These moves often say as much about what a staff values in the final spots as they do about the player who gets the short end, and in this case the turnover leaves one of those small battles looking a little more defined, even if the full picture is still coming together. [Read more 🡒]