What does 49ers Frank Gore’s broken hand mean for your fantasy team?

If you don’t already know, Frank Gore broke his hand in practice Monday — the team’s first padded practice — and he could miss all four of the team’s preseason games, not necessarily due to injury.

Reports say that Gore could potentially be healthy enough to participate in games by the third or fourth preseason game, but head coach Mike Nolan isn’t so sure Gore will play in either game for obvious reasons.

“We’ll wait and see,” Nolan said. “It’s a little too early to tell on that. At the same time, we expect him back, but we’re not going to do anything with him for the rest of the week. Next week, we’ll re-evaluate him and hope to get him out on the field, but he’ll probably have a cast on him.”

Smart. No need to risk your starting running back’s health, especially someone like Gore who has high expectations in 2007.

And that brings up an interesting point: should fantasy owners alter Frank Gore’s ranking in light of this injury?

Probably not. Gore is still a top-tier running back and this injury shouldn’t keep him out of the regular season. If he needs to wear a protective cast or brace on his hand, that might restrict his receiving ability. That situation may make PPR (points per reception) league owners cautious. But Gore shouldn’t be dropped from being considered as a top-tier running back there, either. His potential is just too great.

Where should he be drafted? In an average league, probably after LaDainian Tomlinson, Larry Johnson, Steven Jackson, and maybe Shaun Alexander. He’s still a solid runner with top five potential and expectations; draft accordingly.