Feeling the weight of Father Time as he approaches his Age-30 season, Joey Bosa knows if he wants to reach the peak, the time is now.
Speaking this week after signing a one-year, $12.6 million deal with the Bills, the Pro Bowl defensive end discussed his football mortality, and how the chance to try something new and help put Buffalo in the annals of history was the main appeal of joining the club.
"Just something different. It's been nine years [with the Chargers], which I'm really thankful for my career and how it's played out. But I'm ready to experience something different," Bosa said. "I'm getting old and I'm ready to win. And I think this team is primed to do that, and I'm just excited to join a winning culture."
A mainstay for the Chargers since his Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign in 2016, Bosa has had the opportunity to play in the postseason three times, but has only one win to show for it. Meanwhile, his new team has been to the playoffs seven times in that span, advancing as far as the AFC Championship Game twice.
But it's the ultimate achievement of playing in and winning the Super Bowl that has remained elusive for the Bills despite all of the team's recent success, with Bosa describing it as "overdue."
Bringing a championship to Buffalo, a city which has gotten oh-so-close in the past but never quite grasped the Lombardi trophy, is a quest that Bosa said he doesn't take lightly, and one he's already discussed with his new teammate Josh Allen.
"Josh texted me that if we do what we set out to do, we can really be immortalized in this town," Bosa said. "That's what it's all about is winning, winning a championship. And that's why I think people are here."
Though the achievement of winning a championship with his team is at the forefront of his mind, Bosa admitted that he also feels the personal importance of the year ahead, hoping to prove he can play at a healthy and consistent level once again.
Bosa has five Pro Bowl nods to his name from his time in Los Angeles, but only one in the last three years as he's dealt with various injuries. He's missed 23 games over the past three seasons, and in 2024 played in 14 contests -- nine starts -- but acknowledged that for a solid portion of the season he was operating at 60 to 70 percent. He had five sacks, 13 QB hits and two forced fumbles, and feels that part of this fresh start involves putting his injury woes behind him and returning to the level of play that saw him produce four years with double-digit sacks.
"I know it's been a tough last few years, but I know when I'm healthy and I'm on the field, I play really well, and I'm at a high level," he said. "...I know winning is obviously a huge part of it, but I think I have a lot to prove to people, but mostly just myself. That I can prove to myself that I know the kind of player that I am, and I know I've had some good moments over the last few years, but it's about putting it all together throughout the whole season and being available for my team."
With Bosa aware that he could be entering the twilight of his NFL career, the upcoming season provides him with goals of both a historical and personal level and hopes to follow through on both before all is said and done.
"I'm locked in this year. I just want to do everything I can possibly do to stay healthy and to contribute to this team and be a part of winning," he said. "I'm running out of time here, it's going fast, I mean Year 10 already coming up and I just don't have that many moments left.
"So I have to grasp them while I can, and I think all that's on my mind is going to be football this year, and helping the team."
