Roger Goodell Announces Controversial Decision On Team’s Frustrations With UNLV Super Bowl Practice Fields
When the San Francisco 49ers take on the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl on Sunday, it will be one of the biggest games in the team’s history.
The 49ers claim there is just one issue.
The 49ers were sent to UNLV to prepare for the field and have expressed their dissatisfaction with the conditions there, citing a glaring disadvantage going into Sunday’s game, while the Chiefs get to practice on the prestigious fields the Raiders use.
CBS Sports was informed by sources The NFL designated the NFC champion practice during Super Bowl week, and some 49ers employees are not happy with UNLV’s practice field. According to sources, the consistency of the natural grass that the NFL has spread over UNLV’s
Members of the grounds crew and equipment staff from the 49ers made the trip to Las Vegas last week to tour the facilities as part of an advance group. According to sources, the team has thought about other options because they believe the grass is too soft for them to practice on.
The San Francisco 49ers players and coaches arrived in Las Vegas on Sunday at around 6:30 p.m. local time, so they had not yet had a chance to see the field. On Monday afternoon, they have a walkthrough scheduled.
According to sources, this is primarily a preference issue rather than a health and safety concern. According to sources, UNLV’s current surface satisfies all independent, NFL, and NFL Players Association standards.
The “Clegg” test, which gauges a field’s firmness, is one of the instruments the league uses to ensure that a field complies with regulations. For an NFL field to pass, it must weigh 100 grams or less. A source claims that UNLV’s natural grass weighs about 50g, while the 49ers prefer grass that weighs about 70g.
As of Monday, the 49ers have three options in front of their walkthrough. They have three options: a) proceed as planned and practice on the field; b) replace the sod with new, firmer material that should be ready for practice this week; or c) work out an arrangement with the NFL to use the Las Vegas Raiders practice facility this week, which is where the Chiefs are based.
Following an investigation, Roger Goodell declares the San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl practice fields at UNLV playable.
The NFL assigns one team to be the home team and the other to be the away team at the Super Bowl each year. Every year, that is switched, with the AFC champion being regarded as the home team this time. Typically, this means that the away team practices at the top college facilities in the area, and the home team practices at the facilities of the local NFL team.
The Eagles trained at the Cardinals’ facilities last year, while the Chiefs were the visiting team and used Arizona State as their practice location.
UNLV’s Fertitta Football Complex features artificial turf exclusively, but the Raiders’ new complex features both natural and artificial grass fields. While the NFL andthe NFL Players Association have conducted joint studies, there isn’t much of a difference in injury rates between natural grass.
Despite the San Francisco 49ers’ complaints, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a press conference on Monday afternoon that he sent experts to UNLV and deemed the fields “playable.”
After their walkthrough this afternoon, it’s unclear as of yet whether the 49ers felt better about the fields; if not, it will be interesting to see if they try to take additional action.
For any NFL team preparing for the Super Bowl, this seems like an unnecessary distraction, but it’s difficult to tell if the team is exaggerating or if the problems are serious.
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