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The San Francisco 49ers could be China-bound in 2020. 49ers officials have made several trips to Beijing and Shanghai over the past year to scout facilities for a game overseas,
according to Matt Barrows of The Athletic. NFL owners will discuss on Tuesday the potential of a China game, but no final decision will be made for several months.
Such a game could even kick off the regular season. Air quality in the areas might be a concern, and there have been early discussions about holding indoor practices in the areas leading to a game.
"As a football guy, you're usually pretty protective. Like, 'Hey, let's make sure this is good for our team,'" general manager John Lynch told Barrows on Monday. "I think one thing we feel comfortable with is that (CEO) Jed (York) and (team president) Al (Guido) always keep that in mind, so we're not going to do anything that's going to put us at a disadvantage. But if we can grow the game and also have a cool experience, we'll make it work."
As Barrows notes, opening the season in China would enable the two traveling teams to get acclimated to the time difference without it impacting the remainder of the season.
The 49ers hosting a regular-season game in Beijing would mean giving up a game at Levi's Stadium. There have been
past discussions surrounding a division matchup in China between the 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams will be opening their new Southern California stadium in 2020, so taking a home game away from a new facility would be less desirable, thus the reason why the 49ers might play the role of the host team.
Barrows notes that there may be two additional benefits for the 49ers should they play host to a game in China. Levi's Stadium may be added to the list of candidates for a future Super Bowl. The stadium hosted Super Bowl 50 in February of 2016. A China game would also keep the team off of the HBO show, Hard Knocks.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan was
asked in December about his stance on Hard Knocks. Needless to say, he is not a fan of the prospect of his team being on the show.
"It's a hard, hard, bad stance on Hard Knocks," he responded. "You would see the worst entertainment possible by me."
Team president Al Guido further shared in January why Shanahan is so against being on Hard Knocks.
"There's a lot of things behind the scenes I think that Kyle feels like should not be shared,"
Guido said during an interview on 95.7 The Game. "I don't mind sharing this one. I think Kyle struggles with cutting guys on camera. He feels like that's very personal. These guys are fighting for their careers, and lives, and how much it means to be an NFL player. To commercialize that, he's never been a big fan of that."
With the 2024 NFL Draft less than a week away, ESPN contributors have highlighted some prospects who have seen their draft stock rise throughout the evaluation process. Jordan Reid and Matt Miller pinpointed players who could hear their names called at the end of the first round.
Interestingly, both of the prospects identified by Reid and Miller play in the trenches but on different sides of the ball. The San Francisco 49ers are widely expected to draft an offensive lineman with their first selection—No. 31 overall. The team mostly ignored the group in free agency. However, it wouldn't surprise many people if the
On Wednesday, Chat Sports contributor Chase Senior reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers were "aggressively pursuing" San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. He further stated that the Steelers are confident they can finalize a deal for the star player.
REPORTS: The Pittsburgh Steelers are aggressively pursuing a Brandon Aiyuk trade and the Steelers would be "surprised" if they don't land Aiyuk. Of note: Pittsburgh has the 20th overall pick. The Niners could look at that as equal value for Aiyuk if they can't get a deal done.…
Speculation surrounding Brandon Aiyuk will likely continue until the end of the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, which kicks off tonight. All eyes are on what the San Francisco 49ers will do at No. 31 overall and what moves they might make before then.
While general manager John Lynch assured the media this week that retaining Aiyuk is the priority, the receiver eagerly awaits the 49ers to back up their words with action, making him one of the NFL's highest-paid receivers.
One Bleacher Report writer, Ryan Fowler, proposes a trade likely to draw criticism from 49ers fans. In his analysis of one draft-day trade "that makes sense"
NFL Communications has officially announced the "NFL legends and active players" who will announce selections during Day 2 of the 2024 NFL Draft. Representing the San Francisco 49ers will be former defensive tackle Anthony "Spice" Adams, who spent four seasons with the team and nine in the NFL.
San Francisco selected Adams out of Penn State in the second round (No. 57 overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft.
The NFL's full announcement is below.
In the NFL's continuous effort to connect the game's greats with the next generation of stars, NFL Legends and active players will add to the excitement of the 2024 NFL Draft by announcing various selections and participating in festivities in Detroit.
Pro Football Hall of Famers Isaac
