As the San Francisco 49ers prepare for the upcoming Super Bowl LVIII matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs in Las Vegas, it sounds like the team is not too happy with the field they were given to practice on this week.
According to a report from NFL insider Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the San Francisco 49ers are “not pleased” with the firmness of the practice field that they were given this week.
“Sources tell CBS Sports some 49ers staffers are not pleased with the practice field at UNLV, where the NFL designated the NFC champion practice during Super Bowl week. At issue, sources say, is the firmness of the natural grass the NFL has laid over UNLV’s artificial turf ahead of the 49ers practicing there,” Jones wrote for CBS this week.
As Jones reports that the practice surface meets all NFL, NFL Players Association, and independent standards, and that this is “not a health-and-safety issue as much as it’s simply a preference issue” with the Niners preferring a harder field than the one they were given.
According to Jones, this leaves the Niners with three options.
“The 49ers have three options as it stands Monday ahead of their walkthrough. They can a) go about their business and practice on the field as scheduled; b) bring in new, firmer sod that would, in theory, be ready for practice this week; or c) negotiate with the NFL to practice at the Las Vegas Raiders practice facility where the Chiefs are located this week,” Jones wrote.
It will certainly be interesting to see what the team chooses to do about this situation.
About Kevin Harrish