Rookie Coffee will replace Gore to be starting RB with 49ers

After starting running back Frank Gore left the field with injured right ankle, the San Francisco 49ers made their mind to use rookie running back Glen Coffee as the starter and they are confident that the third-round draft pick will step in and do a good job.

Gore, ranking third among NFL rushers entering last week’s game, had accounted for 55 percent of San Francisco’s offensive yards before being injured. After he left the field after his first carry of the game, Coffee took over his job and had 25 carries for 54 yards during last week’s loss to the Vikings in Minnesota. The rookie has become the focus of the 49ers’ offense since.

Being drafted this year to fill the role of productive backup for Gore, Coffee is the only other halfback to carry the ball for the team so far this season. His performance has not been disappointing-he was the NFL’s leading rusher during the preseason with 249 yards on 42 carries. Besides, he had the physical style the 49ers’ offensive approach requires. No wonder the team is so confident that he can handle the important role Gore has been playing since his Pro Bowl season of 2006.