49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed defensive end Nick Bosa will miss multiple weeks after injuring his calf before Thursday’s practice.
“We can’t say exactly, but I’m guessing around a few weeks,” Shanahan said of Bosa’s timeline, via David Bonilla of 49erswebzone.com.
The 49ers ruled out Bosa and rookie defensive end Romello Height (hand surgery) for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals. They have been hit hard by injuries in the defensive line.
Defensive tackle C.J. West (knee), defensive end Sam Okuayinonu (foot) and defensive tackle Alfred Collins (patellar tendon) are on injured reserve. Rookie defensive tackle James Thompson Jr. has a high-ankle sprain that will keep him out multiple weeks.
“Losing Bosa was rough yesterday,” Shanahan said. “I mean, losing six out of the 10 D-linemen in the last two weeks that have made our team is a little unusual. I don’t think I’ve been a part of that, so that has been different.”
Bosa returned from a torn ACL in his right knee and played 70 snaps over the first two games. He injured his knee in Week 3 last season, almost exactly a year ago, in a game against the Cardinals.
It is unclear whether Bosa injured his right calf, as Shanahan said he wasn’t sure.
Bosa was warming up before the walkthrough when he injured his calf.
“I know he’s bummed out, but he’ll be back,” Shanahan said.
The 49ers are still deciding whether to place Bosa on injured reserve. Only eight players can return from IR during the season, and the team already has several players on IR who it plans to return to the roster.
“He’s right there at that point, along with a couple of other guys that are all in the same boat,” Shanahan said. “Because of the number we have on [injured reserve], we won’t be able to do all of them. So we’ve got to decide, and we’re just trying to guess which ones will go longer, which ones have the chances of being sooner, and it’s just a guess.
“They’re all really in the same boat, so we’ve got to decide that by tomorrow.”