The Buffalo Bills have found their replacement for Joey Bosa with their free agency acquisition of former Miami Dolphins pass rusher Bradley Chubb on Wednesday. Bills Mafia had a strong feeling Bosa wouldn’t be back, and now that’s been made a certainty.
Bosa, who turns 31 this summer, is still available in the free agency pool as of this writing. While he may be a tad long in the tooth, especially given his injury history, he’s undoubtedly the most proven edge defender available. That said, his latest foray in the NFL’s open market has been relatively quiet.
There don’t appear to be a ton of teams lining up to sign him, but Bosa going without a landing spot in 2026 seems highly unlikely after he took a significant step toward his original form in his lone season with the Bills. Nonetheless, where he lands seems to be a matter of when, rather than if.
49ers look like the obvious next stop for former Bills pass rusher Joey Bosa
FOX Sports recently took a look at the top remaining free agents after the NFL’s legal tampering period and paired them up with their ideal landing spots. For Bosa, the destination is clear: a trip back to Southern California, this time to play alongside his brother, Nick, with the San Francisco 49ers.
But it’s not just FOX Sports saying it, Niners’ reporters have backed up the idea of the Bosa Bros. joining forces in San Francisco. 49ers beat reporter David Lombardi told The Pat McAfee Show last week that, "I think at the right price, Joey Bosa to the 49ers is realistic… It's not completely out of the question that they could find a deal that would make sense."
Fellow Niners beat reporter Matt Maiocco echoed the sentiment as well, telling KNBR, "It would not surprise me at all if it happened. I think I'd be mildly surprised if it didn't happen.”
It makes sense for Bosa, and not just because his brother is there. The 49ers have enough depth to keep Bosa in a rotation, which should help out his production as well as his availability. Plus, Bosa is still chasing a ring, and San Francisco is in a championship contender tier just above the Bills, having reached a few Super Bowls over the past decade, though without winning one.
Of course, Bosa might have to take a little less money to go to San Francisco. He’s not going to get quite $13 million as he did in Buffalo, but he should still earn a one or two-year deal worth somewhere between $10 and $11.5 million per year. The Niners have $16 million in cap space as of this writing, so a two-year deal closer to $10 million with incentives toward his production and postseason success will be in the franchise’s best interest.
If Bosa does head out to San Fran, then the Bills won’t have to worry about seeing him again until 2027 at the earliest. The Bills and Niners aren’t scheduled to play in the 2026 regular season, but a meeting in Super Bowl LXI shouldn’t be out of the question.