Nick Bosa has become a quarterback’s absolute worst nightmare.
Before he was leading the NFL in “sackaroonis” with the 49ers, Bosa was a 21-year-old top draft prospect entering the 2019 NFL Draft. And apparently, he issued a not-so-subtle warning to the team with the No. 1 overall pick if they passed on him.
“When [former Arizona Cardinals coach] Kliff Kingsbury and I got together to go to see players and have dinners, we went to Fort Lauderdale, Florida and had dinner with Nick Bosa prior to the draft,” then-Cardinals general manager Steve Keim recently said on FOX Sports' "The Herd." “[We] loved him obviously, our highest-grade guy on the board. Amazing in every way. The only thing you had to say that was negative was probably if he got injured in the future, which you couldn’t forecast.
“So we’re leaving the dinner, and we’re walking out of Mastro’s in Fort Lauderdale, and I’ll never forget, he puts his arm around me and Kliff Kingsbury, both of us in basically a headlock, and he said, ‘I think you guys probably are going to end up taking that little quarterback, and if you do…,’ he looked over at me and he said, ‘Steve, I will haunt you for the rest of your career.’ ”
Of course, Arizona ended up selecting quarterback Kyler Murray as the No. 1 overall pick, leaving the daunting defender on the board for its divisional rival San Francisco, who selected him with the No. 2 overall pick.
Even though Bosa has had plenty of success in his four seasons with the 49ers, his very candid promise to Keim didn't exactly go as planned. While he didn't "haunt" Keim before he stepped down as general manager in January, other players around the league have different experiences facing Bosa.
"We got back into the SUV, Kliff and I, and I remember we both looked at each other with wide eyes and I said, 'Man, I hope he can’t catch him,' " Keim said, talking about Murray. "And he really never did which was a good thing."
It's safe to say Bosa's 49ers teammate George Kittle appreciated the humorous story.
Bosa has one career sack on Murray, but his resume with San Francisco speaks for itself: Defensive Player of the Year, a Super Bowl appearance and a couple of trips to the NFC Championship.
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But of course, coming off a career year for Bosa, there's no doubt there's plenty in the tank for the reigning DPOY in 2023 and beyond.