The San Francisco 49ers head back to the West Coast triumphant and owners of a 2-0 record. Only eight other NFL teams boast the same record, and 49ers coaches attribute at least part of their successful trip to the Eastern timezone to a week-long stay in Youngstown, Ohio. It allowed players and coaches to adjust to the time difference and take away at least that advantage from the Cincinnati Bengals.
"The week in Youngstown definitely paid off, getting us on the time frame and everything," quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said after the 49ers' 41-17 victory over the Bengals. "We had some extra time to be around each other, talk through things, and I thought, as an offense, we were all on the same page. It makes everything a lot easier when you're like that."
It must have worked because now the 49ers are actively considering doing it again in December when the team will face the Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints in back-to-back road games. Baltimore is in the Eastern time zone (three hours ahead of the West Coast) while New Orleans is in the Central (two hours ahead of the West Coast).
"I tried really hard, because there would be questions after the game, so I talked with (general manager John) Lynch, and we tried really hard to make a decision before the game happened," head coach Kyle Shanahan said. "And we felt like it helped us before the game happened.
"Now, we would definitely have probably changed our minds if that score was the opposite. But the fact that we felt that before the game and the game encouraged that decision, then I feel pretty good about it. We'll see if our travel guys can get it done."
Staying so long on the East Coast, away from their homes and families, was tough for players, coaches, and the staff. Coming out of the trip 2-0, however, had to make it seem worth the added effort.
"Obviously, we won this game, and we had a successful trip, so I'm sure they'll take that into account," Richard Sherman said on Sunday. "But I'm sure they'll take what our wives have to say, and what [Shanahan's] wife has to say, and what the kids have to say, as well.
"You might be taking a bigger trip, a bigger group of people the next time. I don't think they're going to take another 10-day (trip) away from the family in the middle of December, or whenever it is."