Lead up to Super Bowl LVIII thread

[arich35]

Why in the world would they install the grass the week before? I thought I heard somewhere everything was supposed to be inspected and good in December

[CrimsonCrew]

This is pretty absurd. I don’t in any way think the NFL wants the Chiefs to win, but for those who do this is pretty good ammunition. But either way this might have a material outcome on the game and it should not be the Niners problem to solve, this should fall squarely on the league’s shoulders.

Yeah, as said, if we're talking about less-than-ideal facilities, that's just kind of how it goes, one of the teams is going to get the short end of the stick every year. But if it's truly a 50 vs. a 78 or 80, that's not less-than-ideal. That's a risk to player safety, and now you have serious fairness issues presenting themselves if one team is in state-of-the-art facilities while the other has to weigh risking injuries to players vs. not fully preparing. Completely unacceptable.

[CrimsonCrew]

Why in the world would they install the grass the week before? I thought I heard somewhere everything was supposed to be inspected and good in December

I read that the sod won't survive very long on top of the turf, so perhaps they couldn't do it sooner. But I have no idea if that's accurate. Regardless, it's not acceptable.

[thesack12]

This is pretty absurd. I don’t in any way think the NFL wants the Chiefs to win, but for those who do this is pretty good ammunition. But either way this might have a material outcome on the game and it should not be the Niners problem to solve, this should fall squarely on the league’s shoulders.

Yeah, as said, if we're talking about less-than-ideal facilities, that's just kind of how it goes, one of the teams is going to get the short end of the stick every year. But if it's truly a 50 vs. a 78 or 80, that's not less-than-ideal. That's a risk to player safety, and now you have serious fairness issues presenting themselves if one team is in state-of-the-art facilities while the other has to weigh risking injuries to players vs. not fully preparing. Completely unacceptable.

Read on Twitter

Honestly I don't know what the standards are, nor if this "23" report has been substantiated.

Regardless it just blows my mind that this is even a thing. Let alone something that could influence preparation, readiness, and potentially health of a team going into a Super Bowl.

[arich35]

Why in the world would they install the grass the week before? I thought I heard somewhere everything was supposed to be inspected and good in December

I read that the sod won't survive very long on top of the turf, so perhaps they couldn't do it sooner. But I have no idea if that's accurate. Regardless, it's not acceptable.

Then that shouldn't have been an option in the first place.

[arich35]

Is anyone watching Opening Night media?
They had Bruce Buffer introduce pretty much the whole Chiefs team and I didn't see that they did it for the 49ers

[arich35]

Is anyone watching Opening Night media?
They had Bruce Buffer introduce pretty much the whole Chiefs team and I didn't see that they did it for the 49ers

Alright, they did ours after the combined captain interviews

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

Lets hope this fades away and quickly becomes a non-story

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

Kali Davis is still a possibility to get activated, but that seems unlikely. The 9ers DT corps is mostly healthy.

[CrimsonCrew]

Hopefully the field thing becomes a non-issue, other than maybe galvanizing the guys a big and giving them a chip on their shoulders.

[CrimsonCrew]

There are reports out - and video - suggesting that Kyle was perhaps a little drunk when interviewed on Monday. Honestly, I'm okay with it. If anything, it seems like Kyle has a tendency to get a little uptight in big games. I'd rather he stay loose, stay in his groove, and not get inside his head and overthink things. Seems like that's when things start to go wrong with his play calling.

[CrimsonCrew]

In asserting that the fields met acceptable standards, Goodell cited two fields the 49ers have used as comparable surfaces. The first was MetLife Stadium, which resulted in several injuries for the 49ers, including a torn ACL for defensive end Nick Bosa, and was the catalyst for an injury-plagued 2020 campaign.

"To say the 49ers were triggered [by the comparison] would be an understatement," wrote Silver.

He continued, "The other example cited by the league was Nissan Stadium in Nashville. What Goodell neglected to add was this: Before this season, both Nissan and MetLife underwent surface overhauls in an effort to reduce injuries."

Did he really cite two fields that are notorious for causing soft-tissue injuries?!?! Including one on which the Niners suffered several season-ending injuries coming out of their super bowl loss? That's pretty absurd.

I can't find a source for that other than Silver, so take it with a grain of salt.

[arich35]

There are reports out - and video - suggesting that Kyle was perhaps a little drunk when interviewed on Monday. Honestly, I'm okay with it. If anything, it seems like Kyle has a tendency to get a little uptight in big games. I'd rather he stay loose, stay in his groove, and not get inside his head and overthink things. Seems like that's when things start to go wrong with his play calling.

It was pretty obvious he was at least tipsy lol. He seemed a lot more upbeat and looked like he was actually enjoying himself

[thesack12]

There are reports out - and video - suggesting that Kyle was perhaps a little drunk when interviewed on Monday. Honestly, I'm okay with it. If anything, it seems like Kyle has a tendency to get a little uptight in big games. I'd rather he stay loose, stay in his groove, and not get inside his head and overthink things. Seems like that's when things start to go wrong with his play calling.

It was pretty obvious he was at least tipsy lol. He seemed a lot more upbeat and looked like he was actually enjoying himself

To be honest, I didn't make the connection that he might of had a few. But I certainly did notice that Kyle was jovial, chatty, and just seemed to be having a good time at media day. You wouldn't expect that type of bright demeanor from him in that type of setting.

I agree with Crims, I kinda like that he's loosening up and enjoying the experience.

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

Sure seems more to it, than the 49ers just complaining.

In any event they practiced on it today, and Kyle said they are just going to deal with it. Lets just hope everybody makes it to Sunday in good health.

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

Good news

[thesack12]

KC opened Jerrick McKinnon's practice window. Andy Reid mentioned he's not expected to get activated before Sunday, but there is a chance. Dude is a weapon as a receiver coming out of the backfield, so it won't hurt my feelings if he's not available.

Reid also said Joe Thuney is a "longshot to play." As I mentioned in a recent post, I'm done thinking the 49ers will benefit from good players on opposing teams being hampered by injury and/or missing games. I've fell into that trap too many times before. The 49ers never seem able to exploit those situations, especially the defense.

[CharityStripe34]

Vegas favoring the 49ers
Most betting on the Chiefs
Media favoring the Chiefs

Sort of strange. But none of that crap matters. I think we're about 2 months overdue for a dominant/strong performance from both sides. And I agree with some that the Eagles gameplan on offense should be the formula. Consistent rushing mixed with more "old-school" WCO short passing game to quell the pass-rush and blitzing that Spags will surely employ. Purdy has been excellent against blitzing and pressure.

[CrimsonCrew]

Interesting bit from an Instagram user re: the spread in the game:

Why, oh why, are the 49ers favorites? I kept scratching my head all week trying to figure out what the catch was. Was Vegas laying out the biggest trap bet in history? Well, it turns out that Vegas’s hand has been forced. They took a lot of futures bets last year on the 49ers winning the Super Bowl. They stood to lose a lot of money on the 49ers. The only way to hedge that risk was to get everyone betting on the Chiefs. And the best way to do that was to make them the underdogs.

So, here we are. The favorite is the underdog and the underdog is the favorite. This spread isn’t real, it’s all business. Vegas wants you to bet on the Chiefs and they want you to win. It’s a Christmas miracle. The stars have aligned and Vegas has issued the easiest win you’ll ever get.

I predict that the KANSAS CITY CHIEFS will win the Super Bowl.

Don’t overthink this. The better team will win. The Chiefs are an absolute machine in the playoffs. I’ve bet against them twice in the Super Bowl in the past and, to quote The Who, I won’t get fooled again.

Take it with a grain of salt given the source. And I read this article because apparently this dude has picked the wrong team for 16 straight years in the SB. But futures bets on the Niners could explain a spread that seems somewhat counter-intuitive. Though I would have thought KC would also see a lot of futures bets during the offseason.

[arich35]

Even though we seem to be the underdog by everyone I think we by far have the most pressure on us and that is what worries me. Kyle with a lot of pressure to get that monkey off his back, Wilks with a lot of pressure to not call another **** 1st half against Mahomes, Purdy with a lot of pressure just as a 2nd year guy starting in the biggest game in the world.