San Francisco 49ers: Ranking top 10 running backs in franchise history

No. 2: Roger Craig (1983-1990)

Roger Craig was the running back throughout the 49ers’ golden era and has to be placed this high on this list.

He is considered as one of the most dynamic and electric running backs of all time, being the first to achieve a 1,000-1,000 season (a feat only achieved by three players ever in the NFL), in which a player reaches the 1,000-yard mark in both rushing and receiving yards.

Craig sported a respectable 4.2 yards per carry in his time with the 49ers, totaling an immense 7,064 rushing yards, 50 rushing touchdowns, 4,442 receiving yards and 16 receiving touchdowns. Criag received two All-Pro selections as well as four Pro Bowl invitations throughout his years with the team.

He was also crowned the 1988 NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

Craig was a three-time Super Bowl winner with the 49ers (1984, 1988, 1989) and one of the key pieces for the franchise throughout their glory years with quarterback Joe Montana at the helm. Craig was easily one of the league’s most popular athletes throughout the 1980s and is still to this day considered one of the most elusive and mesmerizing players to ever play at Candlestick Park.

Craig paved the way for the dynamic running backs of today’s game and is considered to be the founding father of the duel-threat rusher.

Though his absence from the Pro Football Hall of Fame is, in my opinion, one of the greatest travesties in modern sports, he was enshrined into the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame following his retirement following the 1993 season.

Craig will forever be known as a 49ers legend.