The San Francisco 49ers' leading options for relocation at the moment are State Farm Stadium, where the Cardinals play their home games, or AT&T Stadium, the home of the Cowboys, a league source told The Athletic on Saturday. The 49ers and other teams in Santa Clara County won't be permitted to practice or play at their home facilities and must halt activities after the county issued a temporary ban on contact sports starting Monday. San Francisco, which has two home games during the restricted period, said in a statement earlier Saturday that it is currently working with the NFL on "operational plans." The county announced Saturday that the restrictions on sports involving contact and close proximity would run through the morning of Dec. 21. The NHL's San Jose Sharks have been holding informal practices at their facility, and Stanford's and San Jose State's football programs would also be impacted by the restrictions.
What does this mean for the 49ers?
Matt Barrows, 49ers beat writer: It means the 49ers not only are looking for a venue to play upcoming games on Dec. 7 (Monday Night Football vs. Buffalo) and Dec. 13 (vs. Washington), they need one for conducting practices in preparation for those games and another at Dallas on Dec. 20. The new county rule also includes a 14-day quarantine for anyone coming into the county from more than 150 miles away, but the team will arrive from Los Angeles on Sunday evening before the directive takes effect early Monday morning.
Most viable relocation options for the Niners
Barrows: The team's top options for games on Dec. 7 and Dec. 13 appear to be the Cardinals' home stadium and the Cowboys' home stadium. The 49ers don't share home dates in that span with either team, and they are scheduled to visit the Cowboys on Dec. 20. As for practice, the team is looking at both out-of-state options and options in the Bay Area, including the Raiders' former facility in Alameda and the Raiders' former training-camp site in Napa County. The 49ers would prefer to practice semi-locally but are wary that those counties also could issue more restrictive COVID-19 orders.