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The end of Sunday's game marks the end of the San Francisco 49ers season, but it also marks numerous assured and potential departures. Jim Harbaugh has already been released from his contract, defensive tackle Justin Smith might retire, and running back Frank Gore is a free agent for the first time in his career.
I don't know what Harbaugh and Smith might have said to each other, but Harbaugh and Gore had one heck of a moment in the post-game locker room.
Gore had his kids at the game, and in the post-game locker room, Harbaugh told them their dad is the best guy ever, which was followed by this:
Post-game locker room, Harbaugh approached Frank Gore's sons, said "Your dad's the best guy ever." One of them replied "Please don't leave."
— Phil Barber (@Skinny_Post) December 29, 2014
Yea, it's safe to say that'll break your heart just a little bit.
After his final game coaching the #49ers, Jim Harbaugh shares a heartfelt moment with Frank Gore and his sons pic.twitter.com/g2wzQBiFZA
— Ryan Leong (@RyanLeong) December 29, 2014
Here is a shot of Gore with his kids at his post-game press conference:
Here is quick video of Gore warming up before the game:
Gore finished the game with a fantastic 144-yard performance, the second straight week of big numbers for him. It makes some of the play-calling all the more baffling for the first 14 games, but there's really nothing we can do about it at this point.
Gore enters free agency coming off an 1,100 yard season that he finished really strong. I don't know how many more years he has, but I have to think someone out there will be prepared to offer him a starting role. He has said he wants to stay with the 49ers, and is willing to compete for his role. However, in his post-game press conference he also said he wanted to wait and see what the new coaching staff had in mind. I certainly don't blame him for that since his role will be determined in some way by said staff.