Sure, I suppose Frank Gore is a Hall of Famer.
In a Don Sutton sort of way.
Game to game, year to year, I never watched Gore run the ball and reflexively thought: Hall of Fame running back. Not the way I did when I watched Walter Payton or O.J. Simpson or Barry Sanders or Adrian Peterson run.
Gore was remarkably durable, yes. Strong, tough, consistent, pretty good – yes, yes, yes and yes.
But Gore only ranked in the top 8 in rushing one time in his 13-year career: In his second season of 2006 when he finished third with 1,695 rushing yards.
Sutton was a right-handed pitcher in the 1960s and '70s and '80s whose average record over a 162-game season was 14-11. He was a 20-game winner just once.
Yet, Sutton is a baseball Hall of Famer because 12 times he won at least 15 games and his 324 lifetime wins are tied for fourth-most among pitchers whose careers started after World War II.
What makes Gore a future Pro Football Hall of Famer is he’s had nine seasons where he’s ranked in the top 15 in rushing; 12 where he’s been in the top 21.
“I was in San Fran when we drafted Frank Gore,’’ said Broncos head coach Vance Joseph. “He is a first ballot Hall of Fame player. He’s 34 years old. He’s still going strong. He’s still running the ball like a young man. He’s making guys miss. He’s a north style runner. He’s a great person. To watch Frank play well in his thirties is special.”
Last week, in a game played in a heavy snowstorm in Buffalo, Gore, who is 34 and past the halfway point to 35, carried the ball 36 times for 130 yards. The remarkable stat there is the 36 carries.
On three days rest – just like Sutton often did as a starting pitcher – Gore will line up in the Indianapolis Colts’ backfield Thursday night against the Broncos.
“I know I can’t play forever, but if my body feels good and I can train the way that I’ve been training -- if I want to play, I will play,’’ Gore said in a conference call with the Denver media Tuesday.
A dozen good seasons for Gore have added up to where he is now the No. 5 all-time career rusher with 13,827 yards – just 247 shy of No. 4 Curtis Martin.
Speaking of running backs whose greatness came from being good for a long time.
“When you get close—if I said it didn’t (motivate him), I’d be lying,’’ Gore said about moving up the all-time charts. “To see yourself getting closer, why not go and get it. When you’re done, it’s over with.”
When it’s over with, Gore will be wearing a Gold Jacket. And he will have earned every thread. Good for a long time adds up to greatness.
