Despite a bum ankle and a few stints as the invisible man, 49ers running back Frank Gore is on the verge of an annual milestone.

With 58 yards against the Detroit Lions on Sunday at Candlestick Park, he will reach 1,000 rushing for a fourth consecutive season.
No other San Francisco player has done it more than twice in a row.
Gore’s road to 1,000 took a few detours in 2009. He missed most of three games because of a sprained ankle.
And by the time he was healthy, the 49ers offense was airing it out from the shotgun formation. Gore had consecutive games of 59, 33 and 25 yards.
Still, here he is.
“It’s been tough,” Gore acknowledged.
If he gets there, he would join the Rams’ Steven Jackson and the Jets’ Thomas Jones as the only players to get to 1,000 rushing yards every season since 2006.
“I said way back in the spring that the best friend that (quarterback) Alex Smith could have is Frank Gore,” offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye said. “It is a testament to his ability, given all of the things that have gone on this season, to still be in the upper echelon of rushing yardage.”
Gore needed a strong finish to reach his target. He had 167 yards against Arizona and 107 yards last Sunday against Philadelphia. He was the first running back to get 100 against the Eagles in more than a year.
Chances are, he’ll keep rolling. In two previous games against Detroit, he averaged 144.5 yards.
Gore said he never worried about getting 1,000, even during those low moments.
“Not really,” he said. “Honestly, my whole focus during that time was about making the playoffs. I wasn’t worried about anything else.”
n Detroit linebacker Julian Peterson said he admires the way Smith has turned his career around. The former 49er was playing with Seattle on Nov. 12, 2007, when he saw Smith struggling through a shoulder injury.
After that game Peterson told reporters Smith was clearly ailing, wincing on every throw. Then-coach Mike Nolan responded by sniffing, “That might mean something to me if Julian was a doctor.”
It turned out to be Smith’s last game before two shoulder operations.
On a conference call this week, Peterson recalled watching the quarterback play through pain.
“I just saw a guy who was out there trying to win, do what he can for his team, but physically couldn’t do it at the time,” Peterson said. “He tried his best to be gutsy. But a sore shoulder for a quarterback, that’s big.
“I felt the (coaching) staff put him in there too soon. That’s my opinion. At the time, I didn’t think he was ready to be in there.”
And now?
“He looks like he’s healthy and throwing a lot better,” Peterson said. “I’m proud of the turnaround for him.”
—With quarterback Matthew Stafford going on injured reserve, the Lions will give Drew Stanton his first career start. The former 2007 second-round pick out of Michigan State was 10 for 19 for 72 yards and an interception in relief duty against Arizona last week.
Here’s the scouting report from 49ers defensive coordinator Greg Manusky:
“He’s a talented quarterback. He’s got some scrambling ability. It looks like he can read coverages pretty well. They’ve got a couple of good receivers, and we’ve got to make sure that we take them out of the mix.”
—After practice Friday, coach Mike Singletary ruled out kicker Joe Nedney (hamstring), cornerback Nate Clements (shoulder) and running back Glen Coffee (hamstring) for Sunday’s game. Michael Robinson will back up Gore at tailback. Ricky Schmitt will be the kicker.
—Detroit safety Louis Delmas had a 101-yard interception return for a touchdown last week, becoming only the second player in NFL history to record an interception for a touchdown, a fumble return for a touchdown and a safety in the same season. The Rams’ Rod Martin did it in 1984.
49ers rookie Michael Crabtree has at least three catches in all nine of his starts.
—Smith has 10 touchdown passes over his past five games.