NFL refuses 49ers’ uniform request amid major heat wave

Oct 3, 2021; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan walks on the field before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco 49ers’ attempt to get some relief from a heat wave in the form of a special uniform request was shut down by the NFL.

49ers coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed Friday that the team had asked to wear its all-white uniforms for Week 5 in response to a major Bay Area heatwave. Temperatures are forecast to approach triple digits around kickoff, and the Niners hoped that wearing white instead of red would provide some modest relief from the heat.

Unfortunately for the 49ers, Shanahan said an NFL rule prevented them from getting that approval.

“We got the memo earlier in the week that it was going to be hot like this. So we asked on Monday, and we weren’t allowed to do it,” Shanahan said, via Kyle Posey of Niners Nation. “We had to do it before the season started. In order for us to do it, we had to make a commitment before the year that we wear all-whites until the middle of October or whatever and then go to normal.

“But it’s not usually this hot, so we’ll probably do that moving forward. They’ll let us do our throwbacks, just alternate it with others. We’ll get as much white on as possible. The most we can possibly do is white pants.”

Obviously, the 49ers had no way of knowing before the season that an October game would be this hot. NFL rules do not allow for much flexibility in that regard, so they will just have to deal with the heat. The Arizona Cardinals will have the advantage of wearing all-white road uniforms instead.

At this point, Shanahan has to be an expert on obscure NFL wardrobe rules, because he has his own personal stories from prior seasons.