NFC Notes: Nick Bosa, 49ers, Rams, Seahawks

49ers

49ers DE Nick Bosa feels he played the best run defense of his career in 2023 but took a step back as a pass rusher. 

“I think I played the run probably the best I have in my career,” Bosa said, via Eric Branch of the SF Chronicle. “As far as pass rush, I don’t think I had my best year. But I think I’ve learned a lot in the past couple games that I can continue to apply.”

Bosa thinks missing the 49ers’ offseason program last year due to his contract impacted his development. 

“I think (the contract affected me), mentally and performance-wise, not having practice,” Bosa said. “I think my hands kind of got going once I started using them a lot. It kind of takes time to get the timing down, and that’s the biggest thing with practice. And, yeah, just the stress of having that looming and the pressure initially once you get (the contract). I kind of worked through all that later in the year. And I started to feel better. And I think I was playing my best ball towards the end.”

Bosa is confident a full training camp will be beneficial for him. 

“I think we had a great group this year,” Bosa said. “I think having full camps with people that will be here the whole year [will help].” 

• The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami reports the 49ers are closing in on hiring a defensive coordinator with a potential announcement coming soon.

Rams

• Rams HC Sean McVay is one of two new members of the NFL Competition Committee, via NFL Football Operations. The committee reviews rule changes, player safety, officiating, and the increased involvement of technology.
• Rams C Coleman Shelton has the choice to void the final year of his contract and become a free agent this offseason. HC Sean McVay implied he would like to keep Shelton around, saying: “We would really like to get him back. I would imagine that is the direction that they would potentially go. We are proactively trying to be able to get that taken care of. He is a guy we want to move forward with.” (Jourdan Rodrigue)
• McVay said the team will reach out to QB Stetson Bennett “at the appropriate time.” He noted they want to figure out if this is something they feel “is best for him and our football team to bring him back into this ecosystem.” (Gary Klein)

Seahawks

• Per CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones, the Seahawks have hired former Bears DL coach Justin Hinds as their new DL coach.
• Seattle hired Jeff Howard as their defensive backs coach. He coached linebackers for the Chargers last season and before that spent time coaching the secondary in Cleveland and Minnesota. (Tom Pelissero)