That could change Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, as it appears starting 49ers running back Frank Gore may not play with a left ankle sprain. Gore missed the entire week of practice.

Foster rushed for at least 875 yards in each of the past three seasons with the Panthers.

After starting 30 games in 2006 and '07 with the Panthers, Foster said he still considers himself a starter. But he has carried the ball four times or fewer in 11 of the 49ers' first 13 games. He did not have a rushing attempt in six of those games.

That should change on Sunday against the Dolphins. Foster said he figures to hear his number called quite a bit with Gore likely to be sidelined.

"I feel fresh," he said. "I haven't been pounded on at all."

Gore is holding out hope that he'll be ready to play Sunday. If he can't play, he'll watch Foster from the sideline.

"DeShaun will be great," Gore said. "He's done it before. He's been the man in Carolina. He knows the offense. He'll be fine."

Gore is fifth in the NFL with 1,345 yards from scrimmage. Foster, meanwhile, is having the least productive season of his career after spending his rookie year (2002) on injured reserve with a knee injury.

Foster has gained just 78 yards on 37 carries. He has six receptions for 71 yards.

Because he did not know when his touches would come, Foster said he felt an urgency to make the most of his limited action. As a result, he said he has not always been patient with the ball in his hands. He has two fumbles in the past four games.

"I've been trying to fight, fight, fight for yardage," Foster said. "As long as I stay within myself, I'll be all right."

--The San Francisco 49ers have won two games in a row, entering Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins.

Interim coach Mike Singletary said he is not motivated by the role of the spoiler against the Dolphins, who are tied atop the AFC East with a 8-5 record. And, he said, there is plenty of motivation for the 49ers despite being officially eliminated from the playoff picture.

The obvious goal for the 49ers is to finish on a five-game win streak to conclude the season with an 8-8 record. However, that is also getting ahead of themselves.

"Right now, we're just trying to get to 6-8," 49ers quarterback Shaun Hill said.

While Hill and Singletary are still trying to perform well enough to earn the permanent jobs with the 49ers in 2009, neither is saying it. Singletary said his approach is to just win the next game.

Singletary could become an attractive coaching candidate around the league, depending on how the 49ers end the season. He has already caused quite a stir in the NFL with his dynamic personality.

So, Singletary is not only coaching for the 49ers' job. His performance as coach is being watched around the league. He could be an attractive coaching candidate elsewhere, too.

"I'm really not auditioning," Singletary said. "I'm really not trying to show anyone anything. I'm doing what I love to do and that's all I can do. After that, let the film speak."

When Singletary was tabbed as the interim head coach in October after Mike Nolan was fired, he was viewed inside the 49ers as someone who was a long shot to earn the full-time job.

But he is quickly becoming a popular choice among 49ers fans and the San Francisco-area media. Many of his players have publicly supported his candidacy for the job. Sources said that the coaching staff was initially slow to warm to him. But now the staff is on board, too.

"But, then, they realized their best chance of returning was if Singletary gets the job," the source said.

Singletary said he never even considered the dynamic of winning over the coaching staff.

"The most important thing for me is I knew what I could do," Singletary said. "With much prayer, much, I guess, wisdom and day-to-day experience, I had a good feel for what I could do with them and with the players."

Singletary is still new to the business of coaching. This is only his sixth season as a coach, and he has never served as a coordinator.

His critics wonder if the 49ers would be making the same mistake again if they were to hire a defensive head coach.

After all, Nolan was a defensive coach who was unable to establish any continuity on the offensive side of the ball with four offensive coordinators in four seasons.

Singletary might need to present a plan to the 49ers' hierarchy to show how he intends to maintain continuity on offense. He seems to have gotten along well with offensive coordinator Mike Martz, but it is unclear whether Martz would be willing to return for a full season under Singletary.

SERIES HISTORY: 10th regular-season meeting. The Dolphins lead 5-4, including a 24-17 victory in the last meeting in 2004. The clubs also met in Super Bowl XIX, a game in which the 49ers won 38-16.