49ers' Nick Bosa 2023 NFL season props, odds: Reigning Defensive Player of the Year ends holdout, should play Week 1 vs. Steelers

The biggest holdout in the NFL is over, as San Francisco 49ers defensive end and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa has agreed to a five-year, $170 million extension, including $122.5 million guaranteed, that will make him the highest-paid defensive player in history at $34 million per season. Bosa is expected to play Sunday in Pittsburgh with the Niners currently -2 via SportsLine consensus.

Bosa has been away from the team for weeks -- its first official practice for Week 1 was today and Bosa was still absent -- so it remains to be seen what kind of actual football shape he in, but his mere presence alone will have an impact. The No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 draft had a career-high 18.5 sacks in 2022 to lead the league and also leads with 34 sacks over the past two seasons combined. His 40 tackles for loss also are tops in the league. Bosa is one of five players to have multiple 15-sack seasons in a player's first four years in the league since individual sacks became an official stat in 1982.

Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, had been the highest-paid defender at $31.6 million average annual value. Bosa and big brother Joey (they usually work out together in the offseason in south Florida) now have the most guaranteed money among NFL defensive players, Joey's Chargers contract promising him $102.0 million. 

The 49ers now have the league's highest-paid defender and running back in Christian McCaffrey. It helps enormously that starting quarterback Brock Purdy makes less than $1 million. San Francisco is committed to about $260 million in payroll cash this year alone. The salary cap is $224.8 million for every team in 2023, but there are ways around that number. The 49ers' last Super Bowl win coincided with the 1994 installation of the salary cap at $34.6 million.

San Francisco has made a habit of re-signing some of its big-name players just before camp or soon after it opens. They did the same with tight end George Kittle in 2020, linebacker Fred Warner in 2021 and receiver Deebo Samuel in 2022.

As an aside, this deal could help end holdouts for fellow pass-rushers Chris Jones of Kansas City and Brian Burns of Carolina, although Jones and the Chiefs play Thursday night, so it may be too quick of a turnaround for him. Neither will get close to what Bosa got, but at least the market has spoken.

Here are Nick Bosa's active season props at DraftKings:

• To repeat as NFL Defensive Player of the Year: +1200
• To lead NFL in sacks: +550 favorite
• Over/Under 14.75 sacks: Under -115 favorite
• NFL leader with Over/Under 18.75 sacks: Both -110
• To have at least two sacks in three games: +150

Bosa, whose holdout lasted 43 days, had four games last year with at least two sacks, including three against Miami. Only eight players have won NFL Defensive Player of the Year multiple times. The only two to repeat were J.J. Watt in 2015 (his third win) and Donald in 2018 (won his third in 2020).

This is certainly not ideal news for Pittsburgh second-year QB Kenny Pickett, who did look great this preseason. The Steelers were middle-of-the-pack last year in allowing 40 sacks. The teams last met in 2019 in the Bay Area and the Niners won 24-20. Bosa didn't record a sack. 

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