San Francisco 49ers star defensive end Nick Bosa is battling tendinitis during his rehabilitation from a torn ACL, but the team is not yet concerned about his availability for the season opener, coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday.Bosa has not practiced since Aug. 3 because of what the team has called “soreness,” missing the past six sessions, including Tuesday’s joint practice with the Tennessee Titans. Shanahan said tendinitis is common for players coming off of torn ACLs, estimating that around 90 percent of 49ers players have experienced it during rehab.“It’s a normal thing,” the coach said. “That’s why we gotta be smart here, week to week. But no concerns about him, any more than that.”The 49ers open the regular season on Sept. 10 in Australia (Sept. 9 in the U.S.) against the Los Angeles Rams.Bosa, who turns 29 in October, tore the ACL in his right knee in September and missed all but three games of the 2025 season. He had surgery to repair a partially torn ACL in the same knee in 2015 while he was a senior at St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He also tore the ACL and meniscus in his left knee in 2020, his second NFL season.
Bosa avoided the physically unable to perform list when training camp opened, allowing him to participate in practice, and he made a strong impression on teammates, including left tackle Trent Williams. Bosa had worked mostly in individual drills and off to the side on his own before missing the Aug. 5 practice.“He was doing great, and then he got sore just going through some of the individual (drills),” Shanahan told reporters on Saturday. “You wish that didn’t happen, but no, there’s no concern to where something’s happened that is a big setback or anything. We’ll wait until the soreness goes away and evaluate why the soreness has happened, but I still feel pretty good about that.”Shanahan also elaborated on the absence of running back Christian McCaffrey, who sat out Monday and Tuesday because of “tightness” in an unspecified area, saying the team is being cautious with the three-time All-Pro, much like with rookie receiver De’Zhaun Stribling earlier in training camp.Asked if he’s worried McCaffrey’s injury could linger into the season, Shanahan replied, “No, my concern would be him toughing through tightness, like a lot of people do, and then hurting something bad, and then pulling something, which, then it could be a (monthlong absence). That would be our concern.”“We just want to make sure we don’t make it something to be concerned about,” he added.Meanwhile, veteran wide receiver Mike Evans returned to practice for the first time since Aug. 1, after missing six sessions with a strained quad.Shanahan said most starters will not play in the 49ers’ preseason opener against the Titans on Thursday night.Aug 11, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms
