Frank Gore makes sense for Indianapolis Colts

By Kevin Parvizi | Mar 8, 2015

Now that the New Orleans Saints have re-signed power back Mark Ingram, San Francisco 49ers veteran Frank Gore and Buffalo Bills speedster C.J. Spiller will be the best running backs on the open market. While there’s no chance of Spiller being back with the Bills after the team acquired LeSean McCoy (and re-worked his deal), there is a chance we could see Gore back with the Niners despite the chances of there being some hurt feelings after what happened last year.

There is plenty of reason to believe, however, that Gore won’t be back in the Bay Area in 2015, since he should receive plenty of interest from running back-needy teams. NJ.com’s Eliot Shorr-Parks reports that the Philadelphia Eagles have “serious interest” in the veteran rusher, and now CSN Bay Area’s plugged-in Matt Maiocco passes along “mutual interest” between Gore and the Indianapolis Colts in getting a deal done.

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The Colts unsurprisingly re-signed solid 2014 contributor Dan Herron at running back, but they clearly need a reliable feature back to help boost their profile. They made it to the AFC Championship Game last season after taking advantage of Peyton Manning‘s divisional round dud, but their inability to run the ball haunted them throughout the year.

Trent Richardson won’t be leading the line in totes anytime soon, and it’s clear that running back is a massive need for the Colts. Both the Eagles and Colts would love to add expensive feature back DeMarco Murray, who was the best at the position last season, but he’s obviously not cost-efficient and might end up back with the Dallas Cowboys anyway.

Gore is the second-best back on the open market, and he’s definitely a great backup plan for an RB-needy team that strikes out on Murray. Given that the Colts don’t have the ridiculous cap space the Eagles have and would likely be more interested in a veteran RB than Philly, Gore makes plenty of sense for them.

With Ingram set to make $4 million per year, Gore is shooting for that amount of money with his next team, whether it be the 49ers, Eagles, Colts, or somebody else. That’s a perfectly reasonable price for somebody who still managed to churn out over 1,100 yards on 4.3 yards per carry despite being a part of an offense that was mired in dysfunction and turmoil amidst an embarrassing down year for the organization as a whole.

Even though he will be 32 when the season starts, Gore’s production last season shows that he still has a couple of years left in the tank, and he’s almost a shoe-in for 1,000 yards in the next season. One of the toughest backs in the league, Gore can continue to hold up under 250 carries, and a team like the Colts can afford to give him some snaps off by mixing in ideal backup “Boom” Herron on those plays.

Frank Gore has put up at least 1,100 rushing yards in each of the past four seasons, and that speaks volumes to his year-to-year consistency. Signing a running back over 30 can be seen as a risk, but Gore should be a safe addition at $4 million per year on either a one or two-year pact. He’s powerful, agile, and, most importantly, he possesses great vision.

Dec 20, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore (21) carries the ball against the San Diego Chargers at Levi

See, the Indianapolis Colts need a steady back who can move the chains and avoid fumbling issues or other mistakes, and they could definitely use a feature back who can quickly find a hole, explode through it, and go north-south instead of aimlessly dancing around.

T-Rich has broken plenty of tackles in his career, but his yards per carry averages are always underwhelming, as he’s the type of back who will “go nowhere fast”.

Meanwhile, Gore goes places, and he’s scored 29 touchdowns in the past four seasons. His four rushing TDs were half of what he put up in a season compared to his totals from 2011-2013, but he was a victim of opportunity in that regard.

The Colts have an elite passing attack and can rack up TDs through the air, but Gore is such an effective, hard-nosed rusher that he would have to be their weapon of choice inside the five, which is a place on the field the Colts will be familiar with in 2015.

The Colts offensive line has issues and Gore has been blessed to play behind some elite run blockers (like Joe Staley, fellow impending free agent Mike Iupati, and Alex Boone) with the 49ers, but he still looks like a great fit for the Colts.

A strong feature back is their missing piece on offense, while Gore’s rushing style and productivity show that he can succeed despite mediocre blocking. Luck and the passing game alone will open things up for him on the ground, and he will, in turn, help the passing game with his work on the ground.

As long as the Colts don’t overpay, Gore makes plenty of sense, and he’ll lock in this team as a legit contender next season after they were blown out in the AFCCG.

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