SANTA CLARA – Mike Martz said running back Frank Gore was quick on the playing field and even quicker in the classroom this spring.
"He's a one-time guy. You tell him once, and he has it," the 49ers' offensive coordinator said of Gore, who is entering his fourth season. "That's really a remarkable quality. He really learns fast. He's a very sharp guy. So that means you can use him in a variety of ways."
The statement is telling.
Gore suffers from dyslexia, and entering the 2005 draft, many teams wondered whether he would be able to absorb an NFL playbook. Gore hasn't had any problems in the classroom since joining the 49ers, and Martz's notoriously large and complex system hasn't thrown him, either.
Upon joining the 49ers, Martz said he would build his offense around Gore the way he once built the St. Louis Rams' offenses around Marshall Faulk. Gore, however, won't be a Faulk clone.
"I think Marshall's Marshall, Frank is Frank," Martz said. " … There are things that we'll play to that are really strengths of his. He's got that speed and explosiveness. He does it all. He's a physical guy that you can hammer, or you can use him as a perimeter guy."
Gore arguably has more support in the San Francisco backfield than Faulk had in St. Louis.
The 49ers signed former Carolina running back DeShaun Foster in free agency, and Foster has proven to be the team's most natural and fluid pass catcher out of the backfield.
Martz also has been impressed with Michael Robinson, the biggest of the 49ers' three running backs, who also is adept as a pass catcher.
Martz said he envisions scenarios in which Gore and Robinson are in the offensive backfield together.
"One can block for the other, or (we can) use them both as receivers," Martz said. "There's all kinds of things that can happen out of that."
Walker extended
The 49ers and tight end Delanie Walker have agreed to a contract extension through the 2012 season. According to the NFL Players Association, the base salary for Walker's three-year extension averages about $820,000, topping out at $1 million in 2012.
Martz was pleasantly surprised by Walker during spring practices. During the past two weeks of organized team activities, the coach added several plays specifically for Walker.
Read Matthew Barrows' 49ers blog at www.sacbee.com/blogs.
