Will Frank Gore ever play in NFL again?

Frank Gore has been a premier running back in the NFL for 16 seasons, playing for five different teams. Gore is currently ranked third in the NFL with 16,000 career rushing yards. He owns the record for most games played by a running back (241) and was the first NFL player with 12 straight seasons with 1,200+ yards from scrimmage. In all, Frank Gore owns five NFL records and seven San Francisco 49ers franchise records. He's 38 but has not signed with a team in 2021 and it's already Week 15.

Gore played for the New York Jets last season, starting 14 of his 15 games played. He had 653 rushing yards with two touchdowns, averaging 3.5 yards per carry. That is the lowest average in Gore's 16 years in the league, but he was still one of the best running backs on the Jets roster in 2020. We haven't seen him in action in 2021, which makes us wonder, will Frank Gore ever return to play in the NFL?

Is Frank Gore officially retiring from NFL?

We could have seen Frank Gore in the NFL in 2021, but he turned down an offer from a team. According to Frank Gore himself, he received offers from NFL teams during training camp, but he had prior plans to watch his stepson play his first game with the University of Wisconsin. He was back and forth on making a decision to play this year, which is something he has never done before, always jumping at the opportunity to play football. Gore also mentioned a few other factors that went into him not playing this season.

One was the fact that he can still play in the NFL, but it needs to be the absolute right situation for him. In his 16 seasons, Frank Gore has never won a Super Bowl. He appeared in one with the San Francisco 49ers in 2012 when Jim and John Harbaugh faced each other, with the Baltimore Ravens winning.

"Over my career, I beat the odds. Beat the dollars. Sixteen years, 16,000 yards. The only thing I didn't do is win the Super Bowl...If a team is going to the Super Bowl, I'm definitely in if they call me." - Frank Gore

The second factor was that Frank Gore saw this as the right opportunity to pursue his other passion: boxing. He decided to take a fight offered to him, which forced him to focus and train for boxing instead of the NFL.

After training for many years, Gore had his first boxing match against former NBA player Deron Williams on Saturday. Williams won via split decision (38-37, 37-38, 40-35) as part of the undercard for Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley. Gore was a crowd favorite, but Williams landed more total punches and had a clear reach advantage.

Now that Frank Gore has a taste of being in a real fight, could he continue down this path? He's 38 and likely doesn't have too many fights left in him. If he returned to the NFL, it would leave him with even less time to focus on boxing.

With Frank Gore just 727 yards short of overtaking Emmit Smith for the second-most career rushing yards, it would be a shame not to see him return to the NFL. Like he said, it would have to be a situation in which he has the opportunity to win his first Super Bowl ring. Technically, Gore could return this season if a team has a dire need at the running back position due to an injury or a COVID-19 outbreak.

It's a long shot, but it's possible for a team like the Baltimore Ravens or Tampa Bay Buccaneers to sign Gore to a short-term deal if they are short-handed entering a conference championship game.

Outside of 2021, it would depend on whether Gore gets offered another boxing fight or if a top contender in the NFL calls him up in the offseason. Realisitically, don't expect Frank Gore to return as a full-time player.

Odds are he will train for a fight at the beginning of the NFL season and then field offers entering the post-season, hedging his bets to land on a Super Bowl-bound team. Whether he ever returns or not, Frank Gore has had a Hall of Fame career.