From a civic perspective, the 49ers have been 
practically invisible in San Francisco in the run-up to the Super Bowl. (Michael Crabtree’s appearance at the W Hotel doesn’t count.) Although Mayor Ed Lee has predictably made himself Cheerleader-in-Chief, and buildings are painted in red and gold, the 49ers themselves—unlike the Ravens in Baltimore—are nowhere to be found, as the Chronicle’s Matier & Ross point out.
Even though the Niners don’t officially move to the South Bay until 2014, a hollowness has already set in. Despite that big SF on the helmets, they’re kind of already gone. One can only imagine how things will be next year, the team’s last at Candlestick, if it were to make another Super Bowl run.
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