As 49ers owner Jed York awaits word on a possible suspension by the NFL, York’s apparent self-imposed suspension will continue.

Via Adam Schefter of ESPN, York will not attend Sunday’s home opener, against the Dolphins.

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Schefter also notes that York made the trip to Australia for the Week 1 game against the Rams, but he did not attend the contest in Melbourne.

Meanwhile, an unnamed source tells Schefter that the NFL is expected to make a decision on York’s Personal Conduct Policy discipline “soon.”

On August 24, York pleaded no contest to a pair of misdemeanors in Ohio, the day after he was arrested in connection with a failed effort to arrange a rendezvous with a prostitute.

Because the legal case is over, there’s no impediment to the NFL’s decision-making process. It’s possible that the league office and York are attempting to negotiate a punishment that would not be appealed by York, further prolonging the story — and causing it to generate more headlines.

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The overriding question is whether, in the end, the league will be true to its claim that it holds owners to a higher standard, or whether the punishment will be perceived as being equivalent to (or possibly even less than) the sanction a player would experience.

Sunday’s game is a rematch of Super Bowl XIX, a much-hyped showdown between Joe Montana and Dan Marino. The 49ers won easily in the game played at Stanford Stadium, 38-16.