The 49ers are in uncharted territory with defensive end Nick Bosa. A team that typically has its contract extensions done before or early in training camp is now dealing with a negotiation that’s threatening to bleed into the regular season.
With fewer than three weeks to go until the season opener in Pittsburgh, Bosa still hasn’t reported for camp. It’s a new phenomenon for the 49ers front office and general manager John Lynch, who told KNBR in San Francisco that while he doesn’t like how long the process has gone, the team and Bosa are still working toward a solution.
“Concern’s a relative word. I don’t like the situation,” Lynch said. “Since our tenure here we haven’t had a holdout anywhere toward this magnitude. So, not something I’m comfortable with. We’re working really hard to try to change that. We’re in good communication with his reps. He’s a special player, he’s gonna get a special contract I can tell you that. But yeah, we’re getting closer and eager to bring this to a close, but I think I’ll leave it at that. We’ve talked from the beginning, Nick and myself and his representatives about ‘let’s keep this thing in house,’ and so we’ll continue to do that and just know that we’re working diligently to try to bring it to a close.”
The 49ers have until Sept. 10 to get deal done before the regular season opener, although Bosa would need some amount of practice to get in playing shape and to be involved in game planning. A full week of practice would mean Bosa needs to be back by Sept. 4.
Ideally though the deal is done before that and the 49ers can exit the uncharted waters they’ve waded through the entire offseason.
