After three decades on the sidelines, 49ers icon Roger Craig finally stands on the brink of the Hall of Fame gold jacket that eluded him for years.QQ
Canton just called Roger Craig’s name again, and this time he’s only one vote away from immortality.
The San Francisco 49ers’ legendary running back has officially advanced to the final five Seniors candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026, alongside Ken Anderson, L.C. Greenwood, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft. A 50-person committee will vote before Super Bowl LX: a candidate needs at least 80% approval, with a maximum of three inductees allowed. In other words, Craig doesn’t just need to be liked; he needs to be one of the three most beloved names on the list.
Craig literally rewrote what a modern running back could be. In 1985 he became the first player in NFL history to record 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in the same season (1,050 rushing + 1,016 receiving). Three years later he one-upped himself: 1,502 rushing yards and 2,036 total yards from scrimmage, a number that still ranks top-10 all-time for a running back. He delivered three Super Bowl rings (XIX, XXIII, XXIV), four Pro Bowls, one First-Team All-Pro nod, and remains the only RB to score a touchdown in all three Super Bowls he played in.
His playoff résumé is jaw-dropping: 18 games, 841 rushing yards, 606 receiving yards, nearly 80 yards from scrimmage per postseason contest. Yet ever since he hung up his cleats in 1993, the gold jacket has quietly passed him by.
Now everything has changed. One more vote and Roger Craig will stand alongside Montana, Rice, Lott, and Young in Canton forever. For the millions of Faithful who have waited three decades, this isn’t just individual recognition; it’s correcting a 30-year injustice.
Thirty years is too long for the man who rewrote the record book.
But if justice finally prevails, summer 2026 will echo with the words every 49ers fan has waited a lifetime to hear:
“From the San Francisco 49ers… Number 33… Roger… Craig!”
And this time, the entire football world will stand and applaud as the original Thousand-Thousand Man finally comes home.
