The NFL might look to move or postpone any games in locations where the air quality index (AQI) exceeds 200. The AQI in Santa Clara could be well over that mark this weekend due to the continuing wildfires in the area, which makes you wonder what might happen with the San Francisco 49ers' opener on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi's Stadium.
IQAir.com forecasts Saturday's AQI at 274 and Sunday's at 217, which are both categorized as "very unhealthy."
Could the game be moved? Would it need to be postponed?
Jake Montero of KNBR on Friday wrote an article stating that head coach Kyle Shanahan said the poor air quality could lead to the matchup being postponed. While the coach never actually said those words exactly, he did discuss the procedure for a high AQI and indicated that it could impact Sunday's game.
"Once it gets to 200, it does (affect the game) because you're not allowed to be out there after that," head coach Kyle Shanahan said on the Murph & Mac show. "Once it gets to 200, then that would be a huge deal.
"I know when it's above 150, that does affect a certain group of people who have some higher risk with some pre-conditioned stuff that they have, so if it got above 150, you could lose a few players. But 200 is the mark where you can't go out there.
"I wish I could control it, but I can't, so I try not to think about it because it just wastes time for me."
Of course, a lot could change before Sunday, and IQAir.com just offers an estimated projection of what might happen.
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