Sometimes we don’t realize how good something is until it’s gone. That is one of the many thoughts circling my mind since Frank Gore officially announced his retirement last week. Sure, it’s something we all expected at this point in his 16-year career. And sure, it’s tough to look past those final few mediocre seasons when he bounced from team to team. One thing is certain though: Gore was clearly one of the best running backs ever to grace the league.
I like to look back to 2006 when I was a high school sophomore learning the ways of fantasy football. I rostered this young San Francisco running back as a depth piece behind my stable of Shaun Alexander, Cadillac Williams, and presumed rookie phenom Reggie Bush. Following a 170 total yard, two-touchdown performance in Week 1, that young back moved into my starting lineup, and the legend of Frank Gore began to unfold.
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Rookie Campaign
Gore took the league by storm in his first year as a starter, finishing third overall with 1,695 yards and eight touchdowns on 312 carries. He showed a good mixture of patience, physicality, and break-away speed. He consistently made defenders miss, ran through contact, and always fell forward.
In short, Gore was a complete back that brought a little bit of everything with his game. He landed a spot on the 2nd-Team All-Pro roster and would’ve likely been an even bigger story in the league if not for LaDainian Tomlinson scoring an NFL record 28 touchdowns that year.
The 49ers
It didn’t take long for Gore to cement his legacy as a 49er. Over the next five years, he averaged 1,064 rushing yards per season, and on Week 13 of 2011 against the St. Louis Rams, he became the 49ers’ all-time leading rusher. Gore, who was now 28 years old, would close out that season with 7,625 career rushing yards, leaving many wondering just how much gas he had left in the tank. The next six seasons however would showcase his most valuable qualities; durability, longevity, and consistency.
Gore wrapped up his final three seasons at San Francisco averaging 1,150 rushing yards, and without missing a single game! He left the 49ers following the 2014 season, sitting at 20th on the all-time rushing list with 11,073 yards. Now going on 32, Gore signed a three-year deal with the Indianapolis Colts. He would go on to again start all 16 games each of those three seasons.
His time in Indianapolis was when “Gore-watch” began, as he climbed higher and higher on the all-time rushing list. It seemed like every few weeks he leapfrogged one of the greats. Over the course of the 2016 season, he surpassed players like Marcus Allen, Edgerrin James, Marshall Faulk, Jim Brown, and Tony Dorsett. A year later, he had passed the likes of Eric Dickerson, Jerome Bettis, and Tomlinson.
Still Going
Gore bounced around over the next three seasons, playing for the Dolphins, Bills, and Jets. The biggest accomplishment of his career came on Week 12 of the 2019 season. Gore took a six-yard 4th quarter carry against the Broncos and officially supplanted Barry Sanders as the third-leading rusher in league history. By the end of his 2020 season with the Jets, he had reached an astounding 16,000 career yards, where he sits today.
Now at 39 years old and a year removed from the game, Gore has officially signed a one-day deal with the 49ers, and announced his retirement from the NFL. Gore’s illustrious 16-year career is one built on grit and determination and clearly deserves to be enshrined in Canton. He ends as the best 49ers runner of all time, a five-time Pro Bowler, and holds numerous league and franchise records. The one that represents his career the best: 241 games played, the most by any running back in league history.
NFL Records
- Most career games by an NFL running back: 241
- Most seasons with 1,200 yards from scrimmage: 12
- Most consecutive seasons with at least 500 yards rushing: 16
- Most consecutive seasons with at least 600 yards rushing: 14
- Most consecutive seasons with at least 700 yards rushing: 13 (tied with Emmitt Smith)
49ers Franchise Records
- Most rushing yards in a career: 11,073
- Most rushing yards in a game: 212 (Week 11, 2006)
- Most 100-yard games in a season: 9 (2006)
- Most consecutive games with 100 yards: 5 (Weeks 4–9, 2011)
- Most rushing yards in a season: 1,695 (2006)
- Most scrimmage yards in a season: 2,180 (2006)
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