Frank Gore knows his 49ers future is uncertain, remains professional

San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore has put together an all-time great career, working his way to the top of the 49ers all-time rushing leaderboard, and closing in on the top 20 rushing totals in NFL history. There is no doubting he has had a fantastic career.

After this season, Gore will be a free agent, and while he is getting up there in age, he is not ready to hang up his cleats. We have heard him discuss the topic multiple times. He knows the 49ers have a plan for the future, and at some point he will not be part of it. While we often see players get upset over this, Gore has seemingly handled this about as professionally as anybody could expect.

After Sunday's game against the Giants, Gore was discussing Michael Crabtree's touchdown and mentioned it being Crabtree's contract year. At some point, he got onto his own contract situation:

"I feel great and I know it's a contract year for me," Gore said. "I still love the game and I feel great and I still want to play the game. I feel like I'm still playing at a high level and you know I'm just coming out here week to week.

"And if I won't be back here, then I'll show the other teams what I can do.

"But I want to be back here."

On Tuesday, Gore made an appearance on The Jim Rome Show. He once again had a chance to discuss his situation in San Francisco:

"I'd love to be back here but they got younger guys. You know how they feel about running backs. That's why each week I go out to play for my team and to play for myself, and also to show other teams I can still be Frank Gore."

It will be a shame when Gore's career does inevitably come to an end, but it appears that it will at least not be overly acrimonious.

Gore would not be the first person with a fairly peaceful exit from his primary franchise, but sometimes things can get ugly. We're seeing it potentially play out that way up in Seattle. Marshawn Lynch seems more and more frustrated with each passing day, and seemingly has a bad relationship with Pete Carroll. Lynch seems to be able to continue doing his job, but it is not a pretty situation in Seattle. The Seahawks could elect to go with Robert Turbin and Christine Michael, or someone from the 2015 draft if they part ways with Lynch. At this point, the odds seem pretty good that Lynch is gone after this season, but there is a lot of football to be played until a final decision is made.

Thankfully, the 49ers are dealing with a situation that has not grown toxic, and hopefully will remain in its current state. Frank Gore's primary goal right now is winning a Super Bowl, and while he recognizes that he is promoting himself to other teams with his play, he is keeping team goals at the fore-front as well. That's all we can really ask for at this point.