It’s been a season full of bruises and question marks for the San Francisco 49ers, and now an unexpected theory is gaining traction - one that sounds more like a sci-fi subplot than a football headline. The buzz? That an electrical substation near Levi’s Stadium might be playing a role in the team’s rash of injuries.
Yes, you read that right. As the NFL world turns its attention to Super Bowl 60 - set to be played at the 49ers’ home in Santa Clara - this theory has become an oddly persistent talking point.
And while the league hasn’t found any hard evidence to support the idea, it’s not brushing it off entirely either. The NFL’s chief medical officer told NBC Sports Bay Area that the league remains “open-minded” about the possibility, and 49ers general manager John Lynch echoed that sentiment, saying it’s at least worth investigating.
Now, to be clear, neither Super Bowl team - the Seahawks and the Patriots - is using the 49ers’ facility for prep this week. That decision was made well before this theory started making the rounds. The Patriots are based out of Stanford University, while the Seahawks are getting their work in at San Jose State.
Still, the conversation took on a new life when tight end George Kittle appeared on The Pat McAfee Show just days before the big game. Kittle, who was one of several key 49ers to go down with injury this season, didn’t dismiss the theory outright - and even shared an eyebrow-raising anecdote about his teammate, Christian McCaffrey.
“Christian is very aware,” Kittle said, responding to McAfee’s claim that McCaffrey reportedly turns off his Wi-Fi at night out of concern for the substation theory. “As a professional athlete, you’re doing everything to get 1% better.
What about something that is making you 1% worse? If this substation is making you 1% worse, wouldn’t you want to know about it?”
That’s the kind of logic that resonates in locker rooms across the league. NFL players are known for their obsessive attention to detail - sleep, hydration, recovery protocols, nutrition - all in the name of gaining the slightest edge. So when something as seemingly obscure as electromagnetic fields gets linked to performance or injury, it’s not surprising that players are at least curious.
McAfee, playing devil’s advocate, pointed out that skeptics would argue the impact is “0%.”
“Yeah, they’re haters,” Kittle fired back with a grin. “When they built the stadium, they quadrupled the size of the whole substation. So, a little bit of different energy coming off that thing since they expanded it.”
Kittle even floated a theory of his own, pointing to linebacker Fred Warner - a player who trains at the facility year-round and has largely avoided serious injury. “So, did he just absorb the electromagnetic stuff?
And he’s only been hurt once in his career. So, is it people who leave and come back that are affected more than people who stay there year-round?”
It’s a wild conversation, no doubt. And while it’s easy to dismiss as quirky offseason chatter, it speaks to a broader truth in the NFL: when injuries pile up and seasons fall short, teams and players will search for answers anywhere they can find them - even if that means looking just beyond the practice field at a hulking substation humming in the background.
As McAfee wrapped up the segment, he said what many are probably thinking: “Hopefully they’ll get to the bottom of it.”
Until then, this theory - no matter how unorthodox - remains part of the 49ers’ ongoing mystery.