The San Francisco 49ers lost their star edge rusher Nick Bosa to an ACL injury in their game against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, Sept. 21. This is Bosa’s third ACL injury of his football career and his second in the NFL, with the last one coming early in the 2020 season.
In the wake of his injury, the 49ers will receive $7 million in salary cap relief in the 2026 season. According to a report from ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler, this insurance policy was installed in the San Francisco front office in the case of a season-ending injury.
The 49ers’ have a little over $274 million already guaranteed on the books for the 2026 season according to spotrac, leaving their cap space at $60,374,680 before the insurance policy is implemented. With the additional $7 million added to that number, San Francisco will jump up from the No. 13 to No. 12 in salary cap room during the 2026 offseason, allowing them to spend a little extra on free agents and/or contract extensions.
Bosa is currently in year two of a five year contract extension with the 49ers which he signed in 2023, with an opt out available after the 2027 season. His cap hit during this season is $20.4 million, but will increase heavily to just over $42 million in the 2026 season.
Bosa Out For Season, Will Get Surgery On ACL
Bosa’s injury came in the first quarter of Sunday’s win over the Arizona Cardinals, during a pass rush where he landed his right leg awkwardly while being double teamed by two Arizona offensive linemen. Bosa gingerly walked off the field and could be seen lying on the ground in apparent serious pain on the sideline shortly after.
San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan talked to the media about his star edge rusher’s injury after the game.
“I was told it’s as clean as it gets,” Shanahan said. “In terms of if you have an ACL, I was told that’s the kind that you want.”
So that’s the good news on Bosa’s front. The bad news is that the 49ers will be without their best player for the remainder of the 2025 season.
Luckily, the Niners are off to a phenomenal 3-0 start, primarily led offensively by the NFL’s comedic relief Mac Jones under center. San Francisco has a jump start on their win total, so now they’ll have to focus on just playing .500 football without Bosa for the remainder of the season in order to make the playoffs.
Niners and Cardinals Both Lose Key Pieces For Season
However bad Bosa’s injury was, he was at least able to walk off the field under his own power. Cardinals running back James Conner couldn’t say the same, as he left the game early in the third quarter on a injury cart after a gruesome ankle injury.
The Cardinals later announced that Conner will miss the rest of the season.
In a very strong NFC West (at least parity-wise) two legitimate playoff contenders will have to figure out how to move forward without their stars, though both teams are off to good starts to their seasons in spite of the gnarly injuries.
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