When a future Hall of Famer chooses to sign with your team as an almost 37-year-old and a 16th season instead of hanging up his cleats and heading to Canton, you know its special. The legendary running back Frank Gore surprised the sports world and New York and chose to sign with the Jets. He had offers from other teams besides New York including the Raiders, per Jets beat writer, Brian Costello.
Frank Gore tells Jim he had offers from the Jets and Raiders. He picked the Jets because of his relationship with Jets coach Adam Gase. Says he looks forward to playing with Le’Veon Bell and helping out La’Mical Perine. https://t.co/AnOpubsaMf
— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) May 6, 2020
“I got an opportunity to get back with a good friend and a guy I respect, and that he wanted me to be on his team. I am happy to be around a guy who has done some great things in this league, Le’Veon Bell. That can motivate me. And I can help out the young kid that they just drafted, La’Mical Pernie.”
Those are the words of Gore when speaking with NFL reporter Jim Trotter.
Also, Gore added, “You will never be that young again, but when I looked at myself on film last year in Buffalo, you couldn’t tell my age.”
The confidence and leadership and some other intangibles that Gore will bring to the Jets can help push them over the top this upcoming season. Frank can help Le’Veon Bell get a more even workload and mentor him. He notably had some ups and downs especially by the holdout and some other smaller legal issues in the past. Having a legend like Gore come in and demand a certain level of respect and dignity can help Bell turn himself around as a person which will hopefully translate to the field. That kind of intangible is so valuable to teams and the Jets are fortunate to be able to get Frank Gore.
Another aspect is the mentoring to the youth of the team especially La’Mical Pernie, and Mekhi Becton. With Pernie, he is a 22-year-old rookie that has huge potential and can learn a lot from a veteran like Gore. Gore can not only teach him how to be the best player he can be, but he can also teach him how to be the best person he can be which in New York can be very crucial and eventually special. With Becton, he has had some drug issues in the past, and Gore can surely help try to turn him around. Gore can also help him learn how to best protect the quarterback and running back in the highest level of efficiency. Gore will be able to help all the players on the team, especially the young players and rookies.
Frank Gore truly made a great choice by coming to the Jets and they will benefit greatly from it for years to come.
