49ers superstar identified as a top 2025 NFL Defensive Player of the Year candidate

The San Francisco 49ers have a roster filled with talented players that could help them achieve team success in 2025, which they hope includes climbing out of the basement of the NFC West and back into the postseason after a down year.

Among San Francisco’s best is edge rusher Nick Bosa, who, at 27 years old, has already put together an impressive resume in just six years in the league. Since the 49ers took Bosa in the first round (No. 2 overall) of the 2019 NFL draft out of Ohio State, the former Buckeye has made earned Defensive Rookie of the Year honors and Defensive Player of the Year honors as well as made five Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team.

As Bosa is set to enter his seventh professional season, Pro Football and Sports Network’s Jacob Infante recently identified him as one of the top candidates for the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2025.

“Injuries took three games from Bosa’s 2024 season, but he still finished with nine sacks,” Infante wrote. “He’s a practical guarantee to reach double-digit sacks if he can stay healthy. When you have an edge rusher who’s that consistent, he’ll naturally find himself in the middle of DPOY conversations.”

In 82 career games with the 49ers, Bosa has recorded 261 tackles (87 for a loss), 165 quarterback hits, 62.5 sacks, 1 forced fumbles, nine passes defensed, four fumbles recovered and two interceptions.

The lone year that he didn’t make the Pro Bowl was in 2020 when he tore his ACL in the team’s Week 2 battle with the New York Jets. This speaks to his consistency as one of the best pass rushers in the NFL.

Since 2011, 15 players have taken home the award, and of that group, 12 have come from the front seven, so Bosa’s more likely to win it than anyone in the secondary based on recent trends.

Infante’s pick of Bosa as the top option on San Francisco’s roster is the right one, but Fred Warner should be considered a dark horse, even if the last off-ball linebacker to win the award was Luke Kuechly in 2013.

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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers’ Nick Bosa predicted to be in the running for DPOY this year