With the 49ers' 2023 NFL season opener less than two weeks away, the clock is ticking on the team's efforts to sign defensive end Nick Bosa to a contract extension as his holdout persists.
So, where do talks stand as the pressure mounts? With 49ers general manager John Lynch saying at the start of training camp the team would keep negotiation details close to home, NFL Media's Ian Rapoport provided an update Monday on "The Pat McAfee Show."
"They're not there yet, and I don't get the sense they're close at all, so I don't get the sense that anything is imminent," Rapoport said of contract talks between the 49ers and Bosa. "But at least they're -- it sounds like there's been some level of conversation, I guess, as there should be. It's like, there's been at least some touching base.
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"They are not there yet, and I know this probably doesn't make anyone feel better, but there still is a lot of time. Bosa, I'm sure, keeps himself in unbelievable shape. I don't think he's going to need a lot of [an] acclimation period, you know. So even if he shows up five days from now, I'm sure he'll be ready for the season."
Rapoport added he's confident Bosa will "make a lot of money" whenever his contract extension is agreed upon, and that the deal most certainly will make the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year the league's highest-paid edge rusher.
"I feel very confident in that, and he should be [the highest-paid EDGE]. It's just how high does he get?" Rapoport said. "Does he get Aaron Donald [money]? Does he get highest-paid non-QB? What does he get? And I think that's more of the question than, 'Are the 49ers going to pay him?'
San Francisco 49ers
"Their offer is substantial. And there's been kind of back-and-forth. [He's] going to make a lot of money. It's just how high, and when Nick Bosa and his agent go, 'All right, this is proper.' "
Bosa has yet to report to the 49ers' facility in Santa Clara as he continues to work out at his offseason home in Florida. With the roster cutdown deadline set for Tuesday, however, his status on the reserve list means he won't count toward the initial 53-man.
Still, San Francisco certainly wants to get a deal done with Bosa as soon as possible.
The All-Pro finished the 2022 campaign with an NFL-best 18.5 sacks, cementing his status as the league's premier pass rusher and more than earning the right to a lucrative pay day. The 49ers remain optimistic that will happen, with Lynch on Friday saying he expects an agreement before the 49ers' Week 1 game against the Steelers in Pittsburgh.
Based on Rapoport's comments, it appears as if talks haven't progressed as quickly as the 49ers Faithful were hoping they would. But Bosa wants what he deserves, and the 49ers star is well worth the wait.