SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Nick Bosa jumped early.
He couldn’t contain his excitement.
With the 49ers still a month away from training camp, Bosa and the team have already started making bold statements about how good the defensive line should be this season.
Before minicamp ended last week, Bosa compared newly signed defensive tackle Javon Hargrave to two of the game’s best in Aaron Donald and Chris Jones.
“People don’t really know how good he is overall,” Bosa said of Hargrave. “He’s not talked about – he might be, I don’t know – but I feel he isn’t quite talked about in the Aaron Donald, top echelon, Chris Jones (tier of player). But I feel he played like that last year and throughout his career. So having him and Arik [Armstead] inside should be pretty fun.”
Hargrave, a former Philadelphia Eagle who signed a four-year, $81-million contract to join the 49ers this season, has been consistently improving during his time in the NFL.
Last season he had a career-high in most categories, totaling 37 tackles — 10 for a loss — while collecting 11 sacks and 16 quarterback hits as part of a brute Eagles defensive line that finished with 70 sacks, 15 more than any other team.
Bosa’s comparison wasn’t far off: Hargrave’s numbers last year were close to those put up by Donald during his last full season in 2021, when he had 12.5 sacks, 38 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss and 25 quarterback hits.
Hargrave smiled when told about the comparison.
“That’s big, who he is and for him to think like that,” said the 30-year-old defensive tackle. “That’s what we strive for in this league, to put that work in, try to be the best we can be,”
Hargrave said he had never met Bosa before signing with the 49ers, but the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year has been “real humble… just talking to me and welcoming me in, trying to help me catch up on things. It’s kind of like a family.”
Still, it’s hard to shake the feeling that the 49ers have been thinking a lot about their NFC Championship loss to the Eagles since the 31-7 defeat in January. Several players commented this week about how it was tough to play without a quarterback after Brock Purdy and Josh Johnson got knocked out of the game due to injuries.
Last month, Deebo Samuel told Complex Sports the Eagles are the most hated team right now and the 49ers “lost because we played with 10 people.”
Hargrave, now on the other side, said he hasn’t talked to anyone about that game.
“I’m on this side now so I don’t need to speak on that anymore,” he said.
With Hargrave on the interior, the 49ers strengthened a group that was already among the most feared defensive lines in football alongside the Eagles, Cowboys and Chiefs.
“Everything we do starts up front,” said new defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, adding that the organization, from ownership down, has emphasized the line. “We made that commitment … to try to assemble the best defensive line in the league, so with him being here, Bosa being here, you talk about [Javon] Kinlaw, Arik, Drake [Jackson], I’m excited about what we can do up front this year.”
Bosa, too, is setting expectations high with Hargrave in the fold.
“I’m super excited,” he said. “We’ve been watching tape on him the past few years in Philly and I think every time we watch him, [defensive line coach Kris Kocurek] raves about him. We think of him as one of the best interior guys in the league, especially rushing the passer, and to have him on our side is going to be a huge addition for us.”
