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The NFL does stand for the National Football League, and there are few better reminders of that than the struggles West Coast teams experience when traveling coast-to-coast. The San Francisco 49ers are acutely aware of the difficulties that come with a shortened schedule and rude, early awakening — a noon kickoff at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome comes up two hours earlier than they’re used too at home — so they had to adjust to back-to-back road games with the Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints.
To help manage that, the 49ers are lodging and practicing in Bradenton, Fla. this week, per ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. They’ll be working out of the IMG Academy, a local prep school focused on developing professional athletes in football, basketball, baseball, soccer, and other sports. Former Saints linebacker Manti Te’o is one of many clients who has used their facilities, having worked out there during his training for the 2013 NFL Draft.
After losing to the Ravens on Sunday, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan and his crew need all the help they can get to rebound. They opened the season by staying at Youngstown State’s campus in Youngstown, Ohio between road games with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals, winning both games. It’s a move Shanahan is comfortable calling for when the situation demands it.
The Saints benefited from an extended stay on the West Coast between Week 2 (losing to the Los Angeles Rams) and Week 3 (rebounding to beat the Seattle Seahawks), so the strategy clearly has some merit. Whether it will make a difference next Sunday remains to be seen. At least Shanahan’s players won’t be sleepy.
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