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The running back position has earned the reputation of having a short shelf life in the NFL — unless your name is Frank Gore.
Of course, even the legends of the game must retire someday. Tom Brady almost called it quits in 2022, Drew Brees did in 2021, and running backs fall in and out of the league every season.
Gore spent 16 years in the NFL, and he brought a rare level of professionalism to every single one of them. Today, the Hall of Fame candidate announced his plans to retire as a San Francisco 49er in 2022.
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Gore Reveals Next Stages of Career
After one campaign with the New York Jets in 2020 and a hiatus from the league in 2021 — including a brief stint as a professional boxer — Gore has finally decided to officially retire from the game he’s dedicated his life to.
Although nothing is set in stone just yet, the storied rusher detailed his plans on “The SF Niners podcast,” which are expected to be carried out in the coming months. ESPN NFL insider Field Yates tweeted out the news.
He reported: “Frank Gore tells @TheSFNiners_ podcast that he will be signing a one-day contract with the 49ers and will retire from the NFL. He finishes his career with the 3rd most rushing yards in NFL history (16,000). A legendary run.”
After the host noted that Gore should transition into the Niners’ front office, the respected veteran voiced that he “will” be. “Probably in a couple [of] months,” the running back replied, “we [are] still trying to figure out when I’m going through my one-day contract. You know, [to] sign, do my retirement. I told Jed York [that] I always want to be a Niner, so we [are] working on that right now.”
Gore continued: “Also to sit down with me and my agent, to talk about me working in the front office because I love looking at talent, I love evaluating talent, and I love ball. And they know that I know football players — what it’s supposed to take to be a football player.”
If Gore does join the San Francisco front office, it should prove to be another tremendous addition to a well-run organization. The long-time running back wasn’t just a great player, he was a top-tier leader and mentor. He knows what it takes because he lived it for 16 years, outlasting hundreds of youngsters along the way.
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A Career to Remember
Gore ended up playing his final season with the Jets, running for a tough 653 yards and two touchdowns in Adam Gase’s system. He added 35 first downs both on the ground and through the air, finishing the year as Gang Green’s leading rusher.
Despite his age, Gore was productive, but why should we have expected anything else?
Finishing with 16,000 career rushing yards on the dot, the running back’s last campaign was not a storybook ending but his stat sheet was. Gore recorded nine 1,000-yard seasons as a runner and 12 1,000-plus seasons in terms of scrimmage yards (one 2,000-yard year in 2006).
Gore played in one Super Bowl with San Francisco and was a five-time Pro Bowler. He was the definition of grit and mental fortitude, and he will likely be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame someday soon.
The flashy statistics and award may not tell Gore’s story, but one simple fact does. The legend is third on the all-time NFL rushing list behind Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton, carrying the ball 3,735 times. He took a beating and never flinched. That’s worthy of a gold jacket in my book.
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