Frank Gore will get his wish. The long-time 49ers running back wanted to retire as a member of the 49ers, and he’ll do so Thursday by signing a ceremonial one-day contract per the Bay Area News Group’s Cam Inman.
Gore announced in April his intentions to ink the one-day pact that would officially make him a 49er one final time before he hangs up his pads for good. He went unsigned in 2021 and didn’t receive any offers during the 2022 offseason.
There’s a little bit of gymnastics involved since teams are only allowed to carry 90 players on their offseason rosters. Even one-day contracts count toward that total, so the 49ers will have to clear a roster spot before adding Gore for the day.
Gore last suited up for the Jets in 2020. That season he played in 15 games with 14 starts. He rushed for 653 yards and two touchdowns on 187 carries. For his career he finishes third all-time with exactly 16,000 rushing yards in 16 seasons.
His time with the 49ers’ organization is very likely to continue in some capacity though. He’s expressed a desire to join the front office and team CEO Jed York was amenable to the idea.
Gore originally joined the 49ers as a third-round pick in the 2005 draft. He spent the first 10 seasons in San Francisco where he cranked out a franchise record 11,073 rushing yards to go along with 64 rushing touchdowns in 148 games.
