As pointed out earlier in the day, cynics and rumor mongers (we employ neither here) have been speculating that the Monday night blackout at Candlestick Park was influenced by a desire to delay the game long enough to let Ben Roethlisberger’s painkilling injection wear off and/or to demonstrate that Candlestick Park isn’t fit to host a prime-time Monday night game, making the coming move of the team to Santa Clara more palatable to folks who object to it.
49ers spokesman Bob Lange has dismissed those rumors on behalf of the team.
While it’s fun to speculate about possible cloak-and-dagger scenarios, in this case the evidence is pretty clear that a transformer exploded, and the notion that anyone would deliberately blow up a transformer in order to advance some other agenda is even more far-fetched than anything we’d be inclined to believe. Such an effort would require the kind of multi-person conspiracy that could, if anyone blabs, get folks prosecuted.
Moreover, while some in league circles believe that, regardless of the cause, the incident builds support for the team’s move from San Francisco to Santa Clara, keep in mind that the new stadium is essentially a done deal, with $850 million in financing recently procured. While a degree of discontent surely exists among fans who prefer to continue to come to Candlestick Park, blowing up a transformer entails far greater risks than, say, a well-crafted P.R. campaign.
So, alas, there’s really nothing juicy about this one.