Add The California Post on Google SANTA CLARA — Kyle Shanahan fielded 15 questions, and maybe it convinced him that what he was about to say in response to the 16th would manifest itself into the truth.
But the bust of his boss, 49ers owner Jed York, in a prostitution sting over the weekend was impossible to ignore Tuesday, the team’s first practice since the news broke.
It’s going to be that way for the rest of the season. Possibly as long as York remains in power. That much was guaranteed when his mugshot in an orange jump suit was plastered on front pages across the country. And the consequences may even be greater than that.
“My view as the coach is, does it have an effect on us as a team?” he said. “From a football standpoint, it has no effect on us. As far as what we do day-to-day, what we talk about. It hasn’t been mentioned in a meeting today, it doesn’t have to do with what happens on the field. Everything outside of there, I think you guys can judge that better than me.”
Linebacker Fred Warner put his head in the sand right next to his head coach.
“It really wasn’t a conversation being had in the locker room,” he said. “Of course you notice it. But at the same time, we’re still hyperfocused in this building trying to prepare for Week 1.”
Of course, both men were put in the uncomfortable position of addressing an embarrassing incident involving neither one of them. Neither York nor the 49ers have commented on his arrest besides an unsigned one-sentence statement calling the matter “resolved.”
That may be the case in the legal system, where York pleaded no contest to a pair of lesser misdemeanors. But in the NFL, there are potentially still serious ramifications to come.
This is a league that cares as much about its public perception as the actual product it puts on the field. What is a bigger stain on the NFL’s carefully managed reputation than one of its rich and powerful owners being caught trying to pay $160 for sex in an Ohio trailer park?
In a statement, the league said it was “reviewing” York’s case under its personal conduct policy, the same rules it uses to hand down punishments to players for off-the-field incidents.
A fine is all but guaranteed. A suspension could be coming. There is even precedent for forcing York out of power, like the league did to his uncle and godfather, Eddie DeBartolo, the 49ers’ previous owner, or Daniel Snyder with the Washington Commanders.
The fact that York pleaded no contest and had his mugshot taken separates him from Robert Kraft, the New England Patriots owner who was also busted in a massage-parlor sting in 2019. Those charges were later dropped because of impermissible evidence, and Kraft faced no repercussions from the NFL or the justice system.
Then, there is the matter of York’s divorce, which he filed for from his wife of 15 years, Danielle, in May. The Yorks’ majority stake in the 49ers makes up a large portion of their net worth.
The NFL squeezing the Yorks to sell isn’t the only reason the franchise could change hands. It may just be the easiest way to divvy up their most valuable asset in a divorce proceeding.
The reason, Shanahan explained, that he was optimistic about his team’s ability to weather this scandal was that York “has been as good as it gets since I’ve been here on letting the football people make football decisions.” It’s no guarantee the next owner would act the same way.
For now, team president Al Guido was on hand Tuesday at practice and huddled with Shanahan and general manager John Lynch. According to Shanahan, York had been in Ohio all summer — he grew up in Youngstown — so it didn’t feel too different once they got on the field.
Shanahan said he spoke over phone with York the past two days, which probably did feel different than any conversation they’ve had in the past. Even if York stays on, you have to wonder if he’ll be able to command the same level of respect in the light of recent events.
Because York will forever be associated with that mugshot.
And so will the 49ers, until they’re no longer associated with York.
