Nick Bosa is one of the most impactful defensive players in the NFL. He’s now being paid like it.

The San Francisco 49ers and the superstar edge-rusher agreed to a five-year, $170 million contract extension on Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Source: Nick Bosa has agreed to a five-year, $170 million extension with the San Francisco 49ers, including $122.5 million guaranteed, by a wide margin. It will make him the highest-paid defensive player in history. <a href=”https://t.co/bRm6S9Eemf”>pic.twitter.com/bRm6S9Eemf</a>

Bosa is ready to get to work 🐻 <a href=”https://t.co/JSg43yMTls”>pic.twitter.com/JSg43yMTls</a>

The 25-year-old had an excellent 2022 season, registering 51 tackles (19 for loss), a league-leading 18.5 sacks, 48 quarterback hits and two forced fumbles. He’s a three-time Pro Bowler and was the 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Across four seasons and 51 games—a torn ACL in Week 2 of the 2020 season cost him the rest of that campaign—he’s registered an incredible 43 sacks.

The Niners picked up Bosa’s fifth-year option last April, ensuring he’d be under contract with the team through the 2023 campaign. But locking him up for the long term always made the most sense for them.

In March 2022, San Francisco general manager John Lynch said the team was working on potential extensions with Bosa and wideout Deebo Samuel.

“We have a plan for each of those guys,” he told reporters. “We will keep those discussions private, but like I’ve long said, those guys are going to be a part of us for a long, long time. They’re fantastic players. They are very much at the core of who we are and they are fabulous players, fabulous people and a big part of who we are.”

Samuel penned a three-year, $71.6 million extension with the team last summer, securing the future of one of the team’s top offense playmakers. A year later, its top defensive playmaker followed suit.

Bosa never doubted that his extension was coming.

“It’s pretty high,” Bosa told reporters in early June when asked about his confidence level regarding a new deal with the Niners. “Yeah, I think I’m pretty confident about that.”

“I think I’ll get what I deserve,” he added.

The only question was how close the Ohio State product would get to the four-year, $112 million extension ($35 million signing bonus, $80 million guaranteed) that T.J. Watt signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers last September.

Now we know: Bosa got himself even more money. Given his production when healthy thus far in his career, he’ll likely be worth every bit of that new contract, too.