There’s a lot of Super Bowl talk revolving around the San Francisco 49ers. But if the team is to earn a trip to the NFL championship for the second time in three seasons, their attention to every detail along the way is a vital piece of the puzzle.
You’ve got to figure that 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan is aware of that fact. But if there was any doubt, he removed it when he released San Francisco’s training camp schedule. His selected time to start practice? On oddly-chosen 10:17 a.m.
Theoretically, it takes just as much effort to arrive right on time at say, 10:30, or any selected time. But by selecting 10:17, Shanahan sets a disciplined, detailed tone to the start of camp and throughout because it’s simply unusual and will have the roster paying close attention to the clock.
And ideally, that tone will pay dividends during camp and during the season. Every sport demands attention to detail, and football is perhaps near the top of the list in that regard. Plus, with all of this Super Bowl talk in the Bay Area and national NFL circles, making it to practice at 10:17 could help ground a roster that almost assuredly has read all of the lofty expectations for the club.
Because starting on Wednesday, when practice No. 1 kicks off, every player will wake up thinking about only one single, solitary thing: getting to practice at precisely 10:17.
Bay Area Sports Hub 