Frank Gore's Fantasy Trade Value, Season Stat Projections and More

Although Frank Gore's best days are behind him, the San Francisco 49ers running back remains a fantasy football stalwart.

With the exception of 2010, when he was limited to 11 games, Gore's been one of the most consistent running backs in the NFL. Only twice in his previous nine seasons has he failed to eclipse 1,000 yards rushing.

49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh isn't going to stop relying on the running game anytime soon, so you can rest assured that Gore will remain a steady presence on your fantasy team. The question is how high his ceiling goes.

Last year, Gore gained 1,128 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground. He also had 16 receptions for 141 yards. Those numbers were good enough for Gore to rank as the 13th-best fantasy RB last year, according to ESPN.com.

In San Francisco's 28-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys, he had 66 yards rushing on 16 carries. You obviously don't want to read too much into one week, but all signs point to Gore beginning a career decline.

At 31 years old, he's reached an age where you see many running backs begin to tail off. It's like every year playing running back is worth 1.4 years at every other position.

That problem becomes even more acute when you consider how much mileage Gore has on his body. From 2006 to 2013, he averaged 257.5 carries a season. All of those carries add up after nearly a decade in the league.

If you've got Gore on your team, you should prepare for the likelihood that his production could drop slightly from where it was last year.

With that said, barring injury, Gore's not going to all of a sudden disappear. His decline will be much more gradual than you've seen with other aging running backs.

Most of that is down to Gore's fantastic vision on the field. Bleacher Report's Matt Miller believes that little has changed in the former Miami Hurricane in terms of running style:

Miller also wrote an article detailing how one would craft the perfect running back. When it came to the running back's head and eyes, Miller chose Gore:

"

Gore may not have exceptional speed or strength—although he has good levels of both—but what truly makes him amazing is that ability to find the smallest seam and crease in the offensive line and get through it. Even when the defense has completely closed down the rushing lanes, Gore somehow finds an opening and scoots through for a positive gain. That first- and second-level vision are ideal for today's one-cut back.

Patience, vision and instincts will take you far in the NFL, and unlike speed and power, they don't tend to wear out over time. Emmitt Smith proved that on his way to an all-time rushing record.

"

Rather than Father Time, the far bigger threat to Gore's fantasy value is Carlos Hyde.

The 2014 second-round pick outperformed Gore fantasy-wise in Week 1, rushing for 50 yards and a touchdown. He looked explosive, powerful and agile for somebody listed at 6'0" and 230 pounds.

When the Niners selected Hyde, it was clear that their long-term plan is to have the former Ohio State Buckeye replace Gore at some point down the line, likely in 2015 or 2016 at the latest. Hyde won't get the starting job overnight, but he will continue to take carries away from Gore throughout 2014.

Don't be surprised if Hyde's role in the offense grows as the year goes on. The 49ers have to contend with the Seattle Seahawks. They can't continue relying on Gore with his usual workload if they've got a better running back waiting in the wings.

ESPN.com's Matthew Berry thinks Hyde could usurp Gore within the next few weeks:

Harbaugh is playing his cards close to the vest.

"I think that's part of game-planning and that's part of a plan and that's also fluid in the game," he said when asked about Hyde possibly getting more carries, per Taylor Price of 49ers.com. "I think you can understand why we wouldn’t go into great detail there."

The presence of Hyde isn't enough to make Gore a fantasy afterthought this year, but it is enough to severely limit his potential.

With the right confluence of events, Gore could crack the top 10 of fantasy running backs. More than likely, he'll wind up in the 17-25 range. He's still worth keeping around as your RB2. If you're counting on him to be your primary rusher, then you better hope to have your other RBs play above expectations.

When looking at his trade value, Gore would likely be worth a low-end WR1 or a high-end WR2 right now. You could probably land a solid, if unspectacular, quarterback if that's an area you wanted to upgrade.

Maybe another owner will become desperate after one or more of his/her running backs go down, and you could offload Gore at a premium. That's your best hope of landing anything worthwhile.

Otherwise, you're better off holding onto Gore and collecting seven to 15 points every week.

Final Projection: 235 carries, 978 yards, 6 touchdowns