49ers Need to Bring Frank Gore Back for One More Season

There’s a general belief among the football-watching public regarding running backs and the passage of time, one that doesn’t look kindly on the 49ers' Frank Gore. It goes something like this: When running backs hit the age of 30, they turn into stone. They’re first defeated by time and then frozen in time.

But Gore laughs at time. He’s Captain Hook smashing a room full of clocks before moving on to reclaim his job from another young whipper snapper.

His birth certificate says he’ll turn 32 this offseason, which will make him roughly 52 in running back years. And since he’s on an expiring contract with a rookie (Carlos Hyde) and a younger proven veteran recovering from injury (Kendall Hunter) on the San Francisco 49ers depth chart, there’s a reasonable chance this Sunday’s game could be Gore’s last in a Niners uniform.

But if general manager Trent Baalke is more wise man than grinch, he’ll do whatever he can this offseason to bring Gore back on a short-team deal. He needs to be ridden until his tank is absolutely bone dry.

He's proved to be the economy vehicle of running backs, still chugging when others are refueling or expiring.

Gore enters Week 17 well within reach of his fourth straight 1,000-plus-yard rushing season and the eighth overall in his career (his rushing total currently sits at 962 yards). He also could log his 10th season with a per-carry average over 4.0 yards.

That’s some serious longevity, but he’s not gimping toward the finish. Gore still runs with power while averaging 2.18 yards after contract, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

He is aging, of course, because that’s an inescapable element of the human condition unless you’re a weird elderly baby. We all get old and eventually develop an appreciation for more age-appropriate musical interests (Bruce Springsteen).

Gore is just aging a little better than the rest of us. Or at least he is at his position, and during breaks from dealing with his front-office dysfunction, Baalke has taken notice. There’s mutual interest in a continued partnership between Gore and the 49ers.

When CSN Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco asked Baalke if Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals could be Gore’s last in San Francisco, the response was direct but still lacking confidence.

“We sure hope not,” said Baalke, doing his best evasive maneuvering before acknowledging a fiscal reality.

“You have to look at the situation. Frank is going to want to discuss his role, and what that role is going to be moving forward. What is the contract itself going to look like? We can both want each other’s company, but to make that happen, there are hurdles that are going to have to be crossed.”

Translated loosely, that means those who make decisions in San Francisco can certainly see Gore’s value as a running back and as a significant piece of an offense with the talent to make the great smoking wreck of 2014 a memory fast. But his financial value is another matter, and any future contract will be dramatically lower than the $6.45 million Gore earned this season against the cap.

How much lower? Well, that whistling sound you just heard wasn’t Santa.

Player	Team	Contract terms	Guaranteed money
Toby Gerhart	Jaguars	3 years, $10.5 million	$4.5 million
Dexter McCluster	Titans	3 years, $9 million	$4.5 million
Donald Brown	Chargers	3 years, $10.5 million	$4 million
Chris Johnson	Jets	2 years, $8 million	$3 million
Rashad Jennings	Giants	4 years, $10 million	$2.98 million
Ben Tate	Browns	2 years, $8 million	$3 million

No running back was given even $5 million in guaranteed money during free agency last March, and those who saw the most guaranteed cash did their best to make sure their position peers never get paid again.

Toby Gerhart quickly lost his starting job with the Jaguars while averaging only 3.3 yards per carry. Then there’s the trio who promptly showed why the fragile nature of being a running back leads to diminishing paychecks. Combined, Donald Brown, Ben Tate and Rashad Jennings have missed 11 games this year. Tate is a unique disaster and has gone through two teams this season after being cut by the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns.

So despite his production and still bruising running style, Gore will have to embrace a reality that the dollars in his pocket are about to take a sharp tumble. That will happen anywhere he signs, but with the third-most cap commitments for 2015 according to the National Football Post’s Joel Corry, the 49ers may be especially frugal.

Toss in the aforementioned depth at running back between Hyde and Hunter, and suddenly the business of football could be cold and cruel for Gore.

Yet still it doesn't take long to see his effectiveness from recent game film and why a magic number needs to be found to keep him.

Gore has currently logged 2,757 career touches, which is far past the typical mileage death point for running backs. But as we saw during a loss to the San Diego Chargers in Week 15, he’s still trucking and leaving bodies in his wake. With 158 yards, Gore had his best rushing total since 2009.

Please note the two defenders draped on Gore’s back here. Then remember the result of this run: a 52-yard touchdown.

Credit: NFL Game Rewind

Along with that power, he also still has speed—not as much as he once did, because again that’s how athletic aging works. But please refrain from calling him slow, the most damning running back insult.

He still has plenty of acceleration to gain the edge, as he did on this outside run against the New York Giants in Week 11.

Credit: NFL Game Rewind

A running back who meets the definition of slow would have been brought down for at best a moderate gain. Instead, Gore bounced to the outside, removing linebacker Jameel McClain’s angle and sprinting downfield for a 17-yard gain.

That Frank Gore—the powerful inside runner who still has the vision and speed to break away for long runs—can still be a valuable contributor for an offense that thrives while flexing its running muscle.

Gore’s role in 2015 may diminish slightly with Hyde ascending and a healthy Hunter vacuuming up goal-line carries. But that’s fine, because with the pounding he’s endured, less could lead to more.

Locating a financial middle ground will be a delicate though not impossible balance. When that number is found, Gore’s touches may decrease, but he’ll still be a key figure in a power-running offense—an offense that will be returning to that identity and doing it under new leadership with this year’s turmoil hopefully a memory.