Nothing like the great Western frontier of America: Atlanta,
New Orleans, Charlotte, Baltimore…
Come again?
After the NFL’s announcement Wednesday that the expansion Carolina Panthers
would join the NFC West, only the Los Angeles Rams’ proposed move to Baltimore
stands in the way of the NFC West being the most ludicrous geographical group
in the history of the NFL. Expansion Jacksonville will play in the AFC Central
next year.
”Actually, I hoped that Jacksonville would be put in our division, because
Carolina is the stronger of the two teams,” cracked Jesse Sapolu upon hearing
the news.
With the Rams set to move to either St. Louis or Baltimore after the
season, the 49ers would become the lone western team in the NFC West.
”We’d win the NFC West by default,” coach George Seifert said. ”We’re
here all by our lonesome. Maybe we should move our practice facility to
Columbia, Mo.”
Geography be damned: the NFL has added the expansion teams to the AFC
Central and the NFC West because they are the only two divisions left in the
league that are only four teams deep. Now, each conference has three divisions
of five teams.
And the good news for the 49ers, who will spend more time next year in
airplanes than on the playing field, is that the new alignment may last only
one year.
After next season, the entire process will be re-opened to a league-wide
vote, when ”wholesale realignment”, in the words of team president Carmen
Policy, is a possibility.
”It’s just one more long trip we’ve got to take,” cornerback Eric Davis
said. ”We might as well take another.”
Steve Young was more upbeat.
”Hey, it’s a tradeoff,” he said. ”All those teams have to come all the
way across the country to play us now. Besides, we’ve always been a pretty
good road team.”
The 49er brass isn’t so unhappy, either: they realize an away game at
football-mad, expansion Carolina is a fat payday as a visiting team sharing
the gate. That is why the 49ers were wise enough to schedule an away game at
Carolina on their preseason schedule next year, too.
SETBACK FOR JT: Wide receiver John Taylor will not practice today and is
now questionable for Sunday’s game in Washington D.C.
Taylor, who had exploratory arthroscopic surgery on his right knee last
Tuesday, had a slight setback Wednesday that required the draining of the
knee.
Coach George Seifert said he’s still ”hopeful” Taylor can play, but is
not as optimistic as he had been earlier this week. Should Taylor sit out,
Nate Singleton will start in his place.
