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Former NFL OC Says Nick Bosa Isn't the 49ers' Best Defensive Player

"He's not Micah Parsons. He's not Myles Garrett. I hate to say it, but in my mind, Bosa is a one-trick pony."
Grant Cohn|
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws a pass against San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) in the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws a pass against San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) in the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

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San Francisco 49ers

I recently asked former Raiders offensive coordinator Tom Walsh who the 49ers' best defensive player is. Here's what he said. His answer surprised me.

WALSH: "I can't say Nick Bosa. You know why I can't Bosa? He's not Micah Parsons. He's not Myles Garrett. I hate to say it, but in my mind, Bosa is a one-trick pony. What is he other than a pass-rusher? Tell me."

ME: When they play the Chiefs, the Chiefs seem to run at him pretty successfully.

WALSH: "That's the the No. 1 rule when facing a great pass rusher -- run the ball at him. Make him muscle up and be phyiscal and have to play the run, and then see how gas he has in the tank to rush the passer on third down. But I'm going to make it physical on first and second down for him. Don't let him be just a chase player on the back side. I'm going at him. He's a chaser. I'm going to wear him out with all that stuff. And I'm going to chip him also. I'm going to challenge him mentally and physically."

ME: As opposed to Fred Warner, who's the best middle linebacker in football.

WALSH: "Yeah. But how effective is Warner going to be this year without Dre Greenlaw next to him?"

ME: Right. Because as great as Warner is, he's not the most violent linebacker. Greenlaw is the violent hitter.

WALSH: "Correct. So Warner might have to play a different game as a linebacker this year to compensate for the fact that Greenlaw is not in there."

ME: What do you think of Talanoa Hufanga?

WALSH: "That. young man is an 8-in-the-box guy. Also I could see him playing in a big nickel scheme where I would make him a linebacker."

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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