Roger Craig
Encyclopedia
Roger Timothy Craig is a former NFL
running back
who won three Super Bowl
s (1984, 1988, 1989) while playing with the San Francisco 49ers
with Joe Montana
and Jerry Rice
.
from University of Nebraska, where he once held the record for longest run from scrimmage (94 yards, set during a 1981 game against Florida State University
).
In his rookie year, he scored a combined 12 touchdowns rushing and receiving, as the 49ers reached the NFC Championship game that year. Craig became well known in his rookie year for his distinctive high-knee running technique.
On January 20, 1985, in Super Bowl XIX
, Craig rushed for 58 yards, caught seven passes for 77 yards, and became the first player ever to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl during the 49ers' 38–16 victory over the Miami Dolphins
.
The following season Roger Craig became the first player in NFL history to run and receive for at least 1,000 yards in the same season. He ran for 1,050 yards on 214 carries and led the NFL with 92 catches for 1,016 yards. He scored a team high 15 touchdowns.
In 1988, Craig was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year
by the Associated Press
. He ran for a career high 1,502 yards and caught an additional 76 passes for 534 yards. A memorable game occurred in week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams. He scored three rushing touchdowns and ran a career high 191 yards. He went on to assist the 49ers to Super Bowl XXIII
by amassing 262 combined rushing and receiving yards and two touchdowns in their two playoff games. In the 49ers' 20-16 win over Cincinnati in that Super Bowl, he rushed for 71 yards and caught eight passes for 101 yards.
In the 1989 season, the 49ers advanced to the Super Bowl for the second year in a row, aided by Craig's 1,527 combined rushing/receiving yards and seven touchdowns in the season, along with his 240 combined rushing/receiving yards and two touchdowns in their two playoff games. In San Francisco's 55-10 win over the Denver Broncos
in Super Bowl XXIV
, Craig rushed for 69 yards, caught five passes for 34 yards, and scored a touchdown.
The San Francisco 49ers were 14–2 in the following regular season on their quest to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls. In the NFC Championship Game (his last as a 49er), Craig fumble
d late in the fourth quarter while his team was trying to hold on to a 13-12 lead over the New York Giants
. The Giants recovered the ball and scored on a last-second field goal, winning the game 15–13.
Craig played one season with the Los Angeles Raiders
and two with the Minnesota Vikings
before he retired after the 1993 season. Craig appeared in the NFL Playoffs
every year of his career, and made the Pro Bowl
four times (1985, 1987–1989).
in 1999). Craig also caught a then-record 92 passes in the 1985 campaign. In 1988, Craig set a then-franchise record 1,502 yards rushing (Garrison Hearst
broke the record with 1,570 yards in 1998. Frank Gore
holds the current record with 1,695 yards in 2006). The 1988 season was the second time Craig broke the 2,000 combined yardage mark in his career.
Craig finished his eleven NFL seasons with 8,189 rushing yards, 566 receptions for 4,911 receiving yards, and three kickoff returns for 43 yards. Overall, he amassed 13,143 total yards and scored 73 touchdowns (56 rushing and 17 receiving).
As of today, Roger Craig and Chuck Foreman are the only running backs to lead the NFL in receptions for a single season, and Craig is the only back to ever record over 100 receiving yards in a Super Bowl.
In 1993, Peter King
(in Inside the Helmet) reported that Craig was the only running back to be elected to the Pro Bowl
at both fullback
and halfback
(a feat which has since been matched by Stephen Davis
).
On April 21, 2008 Craig was inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
(BASHOF).
For the first time since being eligible in 1999, Craig was named one of 25 semifinalists considered for the Pro Football Hall of Fame
’s Class of 2009 and one of the 15 modern-era finalists for the Class of 2010.
Craig spent several years studying Tae Kwon Do under Chris Jensen & Debbie Pederson at Golden State Tae Kwon Do in Foster City (now in San Carlos).
He currently works in marketing at Tibco Software
in Palo Alto, California
.
Craig is an avid runner and has participated in numerous marathons. He was the Grand Marshal for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway.
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
who won three Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
s (1984, 1988, 1989) while playing with the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
with Joe Montana
Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford "Joe" Montana, Jr. , nicknamed Joe Cool, Golden Joe, The Golden Great and Comeback Joe, is a retired American football player. Montana started his NFL career in 1979 with the San Francisco 49ers, where he played quarterback for the next 14 seasons...
and Jerry Rice
Jerry Rice
Jerry Lee Rice is a retired American football wide receiver. He is generally regarded as the greatest wide receiver of all time and one of the greatest players in National Football League history...
.
Pro football career
Drafted in the second round of the 1983 NFL draftNFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
from University of Nebraska, where he once held the record for longest run from scrimmage (94 yards, set during a 1981 game against Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
).
In his rookie year, he scored a combined 12 touchdowns rushing and receiving, as the 49ers reached the NFC Championship game that year. Craig became well known in his rookie year for his distinctive high-knee running technique.
On January 20, 1985, in Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX was an American football game played on January 20, 1985 at Stanford Stadium, on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, to decide the National Football League champion following the 1984 regular season...
, Craig rushed for 58 yards, caught seven passes for 77 yards, and became the first player ever to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl during the 49ers' 38–16 victory over the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
The following season Roger Craig became the first player in NFL history to run and receive for at least 1,000 yards in the same season. He ran for 1,050 yards on 214 carries and led the NFL with 92 catches for 1,016 yards. He scored a team high 15 touchdowns.
In 1988, Craig was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year
NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award
The NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award is given annually by the Associated Press to the offensive player of the National Football League believed to have had the most outstanding season...
by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
. He ran for a career high 1,502 yards and caught an additional 76 passes for 534 yards. A memorable game occurred in week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams. He scored three rushing touchdowns and ran a career high 191 yards. He went on to assist the 49ers to Super Bowl XXIII
Super Bowl XXIII
Super Bowl XXIII was an American football game played on January 22, 1989 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1988 regular season. This was the first Super Bowl hosted in the Miami area in 10 years, and the first in Miami not held...
by amassing 262 combined rushing and receiving yards and two touchdowns in their two playoff games. In the 49ers' 20-16 win over Cincinnati in that Super Bowl, he rushed for 71 yards and caught eight passes for 101 yards.
In the 1989 season, the 49ers advanced to the Super Bowl for the second year in a row, aided by Craig's 1,527 combined rushing/receiving yards and seven touchdowns in the season, along with his 240 combined rushing/receiving yards and two touchdowns in their two playoff games. In San Francisco's 55-10 win over the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in Super Bowl XXIV
Super Bowl XXIV
Super Bowl XXIV was an American football game played on January 28, 1990 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1989 regular season...
, Craig rushed for 69 yards, caught five passes for 34 yards, and scored a touchdown.
The San Francisco 49ers were 14–2 in the following regular season on their quest to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls. In the NFC Championship Game (his last as a 49er), Craig fumble
Fumble
A fumble in American and Canadian football occurs when a player, who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking or successful handing that results in loss of player possession...
d late in the fourth quarter while his team was trying to hold on to a 13-12 lead over the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. The Giants recovered the ball and scored on a last-second field goal, winning the game 15–13.
Craig played one season with the Los Angeles Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and two with the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
before he retired after the 1993 season. Craig appeared in the NFL Playoffs
NFL playoffs
The National Football League playoffs are a single-elimination tournament held at the end of the regular season to determine the NFL champion. Six teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season records, and a tie-breaking procedure exists in the...
every year of his career, and made the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
four times (1985, 1987–1989).
Honors
He was the first running back to gain more than 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in the same season (1985). Since then, only one other running back has achieved the same feat (Marshall FaulkMarshall Faulk
Marshall William Faulk is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League. He is currently an analyst for NFL Total Access, Thursday Night Football, and NFL GameDay Morning on the NFL Network...
in 1999). Craig also caught a then-record 92 passes in the 1985 campaign. In 1988, Craig set a then-franchise record 1,502 yards rushing (Garrison Hearst
Garrison Hearst
Gerard Garrison Hearst is a former National Football League running back who last played for the NFL's Denver Broncos in 2004. He had previously played for the Arizona Cardinals, Cincinnati Bengals, and San Francisco 49ers...
broke the record with 1,570 yards in 1998. Frank Gore
Frank Gore
Franklin Gore is an American football running back who plays for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Miami. NFL Network analysts have nicknamed Gore "The Inconvenient Truth".-High school career:Gore attended Coral Gables High...
holds the current record with 1,695 yards in 2006). The 1988 season was the second time Craig broke the 2,000 combined yardage mark in his career.
Craig finished his eleven NFL seasons with 8,189 rushing yards, 566 receptions for 4,911 receiving yards, and three kickoff returns for 43 yards. Overall, he amassed 13,143 total yards and scored 73 touchdowns (56 rushing and 17 receiving).
As of today, Roger Craig and Chuck Foreman are the only running backs to lead the NFL in receptions for a single season, and Craig is the only back to ever record over 100 receiving yards in a Super Bowl.
In 1993, Peter King
Peter King (sportswriter)
Peter King is an American sportswriter. He currently writes for Sports Illustrated and its Web site, including the weekly multiple-page column Monday Morning Quarterback. He is the author of five books, most notably Inside the Helmet, as well as a TV analyst and reporter...
(in Inside the Helmet) reported that Craig was the only running back to be elected to the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
at both fullback
Fullback (American football)
A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...
and halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
(a feat which has since been matched by Stephen Davis
Stephen Davis (American football)
Stephen Lamont Davis is a former American football running back in the National Football League. Davis will be the Carolina Panthers' minority coaching intern for the 2010-11 season.-College career:...
).
On April 21, 2008 Craig was inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
The Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame honors sports figures who have made a significant impact in the San Francisco Bay Area. The organization is a section 501 non-profit, that was created by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce in 1979.-Inductees:...
(BASHOF).
For the first time since being eligible in 1999, Craig was named one of 25 semifinalists considered for the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
’s Class of 2009 and one of the 15 modern-era finalists for the Class of 2010.
Personal life
Craig is married to Vernessia (high school sweetheart) and has five beautiful children Damesha, Rometra, Rogdrick, Alexander and Nia- Jai.Craig spent several years studying Tae Kwon Do under Chris Jensen & Debbie Pederson at Golden State Tae Kwon Do in Foster City (now in San Carlos).
He currently works in marketing at Tibco Software
Tibco Software
TIBCO Software Inc. is a provider of infrastructure software for companies to use on-premise or as part of cloud computing environments. TIBCO manages information, decisions, processes and applications in real-time for over 4,000 customers worldwide...
in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
.
Craig is an avid runner and has participated in numerous marathons. He was the Grand Marshal for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway.