Bosa reveals game-day superstition he has carried on since rookie season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SANTA CLARA — Nick Bosa recently let a lesser known secret out of the bag — the 49ers star is superstitious.
During pregame warmups, the All-Pro pass rusher always wears the same sleeveless undershirt and black shorts. While that combination is not out of the ordinary, what is immediately noticeable is the ragged and tattered condition of the shirt.
Clearly the 49ers would supply Bosa with new gear if he desired, but he told NBC Sports Bay Area that he doesn’t want to replace the shirt he has worn every game since his debut in 2019.
“When you play football you can’t help but be superstitious,” Bosa said. “I try not to be, but you’ll see me knocking on wood every 10 seconds and it’s just part of playing this game where everything is so uncertain that you become superstitious.”
The shirt, that Bosa originally cut the sleeves off of, has a jagged hemline that has seen better days after being worn in 68 regular-season games and an additional 12 postseason contests. The undershirt also is nowhere near its original white color after surviving 3,253 defensive snaps and 44 on special teams.
“That’s a lot of stinky football player,” Bosa said with a laugh.
Bosa’s practice undershirt, however, was not so lucky. The garment met its demise earlier in the week, after being worn quite a bit more than the game day version.
“It disintegrated, it’s gone,” Bosa said somberly. “This is a new one. My game one is still intact. That’s the one I really want to keep together. If that one falls apart, they might have to stitch it together for me.”
San Francisco‘s director of equipment operations, Jay Brunetti, had not noticed the undershirt’s long-lingering existence, but also added that if it’s working for Bosa, there’s no need to change it up.
Brunetti, who affectionately is known as “J-Bird” to players and coaches, did assure NBC Sports Bay Area the shirt is washed after every usage.
“If [Bosa] needs the shirt stitched up, we will absolutely do that for him,” Brunetti told NBC Sports Bay Area. “He can have anything he needs from us.”
As far as where the scraps of the old practice shirt ended up, Bosa said that there was no ceremonial funeral or burning of the remains. He described a “Hulk” style tearing of the garment to remove it after practice earlier in the week.
As for the game-day shirt, it would be no surprise if there was some sort of ritual if it ever does become unwearable for Bosa. After all, it has been along for the ride during the edge rusher’s 53.5 regular-season quarterback sacks and an additional 10 in the postseason.
The shirt has also seen 209 regular season tackles — 150 solo and 72 for a loss — and 141 quarterback hits which led to Bosa being named Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2019 and Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.
Bosa and his shirt will make their 2024 debut during pregame warmups on Monday night at Levi’s Stadium when the 49ers hosts the New York Jets to open the season. Kickoff is at 5:20 p.m. PT.
Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast
This embedded content is not available in your region.