Well, it’s time to fire up the water coolers.
Asked whether there’s any truth to the notion, as reported right here on Sunday, that he may ask for a trade if he doesn’t get a new contract, 49ers running back Frank Gore didn’t deny it.
“I don’t have any comment for that,” Gore said, via Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. “That’s up to the team and my agent. If they want to trade me, it is what it is. But I don’t have a comment with that.”
If a guy doesn’t want to be traded, he doesn’t say “no comment” in response to that question.
Gore was slightly more talkative about his frustration with the lack of a new contract, something coach Jim Harbaugh also dismissed as “water-cooler talk” on Sunday.
“Things aren’t going well right now -- kind of slow,” Gore said. “But I’d like for it to get done before the season, so I can put all my focus on having a good year and trying to get to the playoffs.”
Gore is entering the final year of his current contract, at total compensation of $4.9 million. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in 2012, unless the team uses the franchise tag to hold him in place.