Frank Gore Top 5 Facts- the NFL Gift that Kept On Giving

The NFL’s third all-time leading rusher, Frank Gore produced some stunning career highlights on the gridiron. The running back remains a hugely popular name in American Football, even though he has now hung up his helmet.

Among all the numbers that Gore posted during his time in the NFL, one of his records is unlikely to ever be broken. It is one that speaks volumes about the brilliance of his career.

It is almost a bit unusual to put so much focus on someone who is ‘third best’. Drawing a parallel with sports betting, for example, people only generally pay attention to the best betting bonus for the Super Bowl, not the third-best. But Gore deserves the spotlight and here we look at his ‘unbreakable’ record and other career highlights.

Niners Spot a Gem

Born in Florida, Frank Gore entered the 2005 NFL draft. He was only picked 65th in the draft and the sixth running back in particular to go. The then-young man had a history of knee problems, but he was wanted by the San Francisco 49ers.

They saw the promise in him and took a gamble with a third-round pick. Gore made fourteen appearances during his 2005 Rookie Year, with one start and three touchdowns.

In his next campaign, Gore’s numbers went through the roof. He played in every match of the season, posting a staggering 1,695 rushing yards. For total yards, the 2006 season was the most successful of his career.

Following his decade with the 49ers, Gore moved on to Indianapolis, before passing through the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills and New York Jets before his retirement. Such was his love for San Francisco, that he returned to the Bay Area to sign a one-day contract so that he could retire as a 49ers player.

The Unbeatable Dozen

During his long career, Gore set a consistency record that is not ever likely to be broken. This is how head and shoulders he was above the rest. For 12 consecutive seasons, Gore reached at least 1,200 yards in an NFL season from scrimmage.

That monumental feat is hard to fathom. It’s also extremely difficult to see how it will ever be surpassed. It’s tough to find players today who have one thousand yards per season.

Post-30s Gore vs Post-30s Smith

While he was more than 2,000 yards short of Emmet Smith’s all-time rushing record, Gore did beat the legend in one particular area. After turning 30 and still going strong in the NFL, Gore posted 7,161 rushing yards. That was 1,372 yards more than Smith managed in comparison from age 30 onwards.

Here are five of his other leading facts:

1 – Breaking the 1000

Frank Gore is one of only five players to have completed nine campaigns of reaching 1,000 NFL rushing yards. Gore got his ninth under his belt in the 2016 season with the Indianapolis Colts.

Gore joined Emmitt Smith, Walter Payton, Barry Sanders and Curtis Martin as the only players to pull that off. Smith holds the record for eleven consecutive seasons for 1000+ rushing yards.

2 – Record 500

Gore does stand alone in that he set a league record of 16 straight NFL seasons with 500-plus rushing yards. In the 2019 NFL, he posted 599 for the campaign, the only season that he didn’t break the 600-yard barrier.

3 – Try, Try Again

Gore also achieved a fifteen season streak of at least 150 rushing attempts. At one point he strung together twelve seasons in a row where he made at least 200, and from 2005 to 2017 inclusive, only fell under 250 attempts in three seasons.

4 – Most Career Running Back Appearances

It’s not surprising that the reason behind all of these numbers was not just his longevity, but the fact that Gore played so many games. He finished his career in 2022 with 241 appearances – the most ever by an NFL running back.

5 – NFL Rushing Yards

Gore finished his NFL career with exactly 16,000 yards on the deck, putting him third on the all-time list. The bulk of those yards were achieved with the San Francisco 49ers. He is behind only the Hall of Fame legends Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton in rushing yards.

Perfect Pro Boxing Record

Just because he was no longer strutting his mighty stuff on the gridiron, Gore didn’t stay quiet. He shifted into boxing after his NFL retirement, where he notably won his first fight by a stunning knockout effort.

A sharp right cross saw Gore land the highlight-reel victory over Yaya Olorunsola in 2022. He followed up with another victory by a stoppage against Joshua Romero in 2022 but hasn’t fought since.