Craig, Rathman an underrated RB tandem

The football season appetizers are well underway.

There is college football Media Days that every major conference hosts. There’s the opening of NFL training camps and of course let’s not forget the high school youngsters that battle under the Friday Night lights.

There’s also the NFL Hall-of-Fame induction ceremony. The 2009 class is comprised of Rod Woodson, Randall McDaniel, Bruce Smith, Bob Hayes and Ralph Wilson Jr.

Several months ago, yours truly lobbied in this very space lobbying for former Nebraska running back Roger Craig to some day become inducted into the NFL Hall-of-Fame: http://napavince.blogspot.com/2009/05/roger-craig-belongs-in-nfl-hall-of-fame.html

I stand by that argument rather strongly to this day but I would also argue that Craig and Tom Rathman (also a former Nebraska running back) are one of the best and most underrated NFL running back tandems of all time. Would I take them over say Jim Taylor-Paul Hourning (Green Bay), Franco Harris-Rocky Blier (Pittsburgh) or Jim Kick-Larry Csonka (Miami)? No. However, like those aforementioned tandems, Craig and Rathman put up individual numbers and helped the San Francisco 49ers win Super Bowls, three for Craig and two for Rathman.

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 remains the only running back to lead the NFL in receptions for a single season, and the only one ever to record over 100 receiving yards in a Super Bowl.

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). He is also the first player in NFL history to gain 1,000 yards rushing and receiving. St. Louis Rams running back Marshall Faulk achieved such a feat in 1999 but the difference is that Craig often ran on a muddy surface at Candlestick Park whereas Faulk played his whole career in a domed stadium.

Rathman’s NFL career spanned nine years as a fullback. The first eight of those with the 49ers. While in San Francisco, he paved the way for Craig. In 1989, he led all NFL running backs in receiving with 73 receptions for 616 yards. He spent his last season with the Los Angeles Raiders. Rathman finished his NFL career with 2,020 rushing yards, 320 receptions for 2,684 yards, five kickoff returns for 103 yards, and 34 touchdowns.

This story hits a nerve with me because I grew up in Northern California (Napa, CA to be exact) as a 49er fan who later went on to gain an opportunity to cover the Oakland Raiders as a freelance writer for Silver & Black Illustrated. The 49ers became the revered dynasty that most people know them as today when I became old enough to understand football. Keep in mind, I was born in 1972.San Francisco drafted Craig in 1983 and Rathman in 1986. I had a great NFL team to root for in the 49ers, they haven’t been relevant since 2002 but I digress. I just needed a good college team to root for – but Cal and Stanford just didn’t do it for me. They still don’t. USC has a great tradition in football. So does UCLA in basketball – but rooting for a Southern California team was a hard sell for me. Well, it still is as much as I respect their tradition. So I became a Husker fan in 1986. I later became a Husker graduate in 1997.I moved back to Northern California in 1998 after getting my degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska in 1997. Sorry, I can’t bring myself to saying “NoCal” or “SoCal.” That sounds way too damn dorky and juvenile. When I hear people those terms, it sounds like a pipsqueak that has not reached puberty yet.

I know Husker fans will never fully embrace the West Coast Offense that Bill Callahan brought to Nebraska but I would consider Craig the prototypical WCO running back, one who can run both outside and between the tackles, as well as pass catch out of the backfield.

Granted, when we think of the 49ers dynasty, people like Bill Walsh, Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Ronnie Lott are the hub of the wheel. You also can’t forget names like Steve Young, Fred Dean, John Taylor or Brent Jones. But, take away the running back production and you likely don’t see the 49ers win five Super Bowls. Craig and Rathman are might never enter the NFL Hall of Fame, but their contributions no doubt played a major part in shaping football history and by extension the future of Husker football.
Craig was a unique player whose contribution to his game and the game of football goes why past his numbers. Take what Faulk did in repeating the 1000/1000 in a season that was great but it was done on turf, Craig did his on grass much harder to do. Craig made history in football and changed the game.

Craig deserves to be in the Hall-of-Fame. He revolutionized the position. Craig hasn't been inducted into the Hall-of-Fame and for that matter he and Rathman are seldom mentioned in the same breath as other great running back tandems because they lived in the shadow of Montana and Rice. And it’s hard to argue because with Montana and Rice, you have the two best ever to play their position. In Montana’s case, you could make the argument that he’s the best “football player” in NFL history. Keep in mind; he led the 49ers to two Super Bowls before they drafted Rice. I think another thing to consider is that Craig and Rathman had to share the ball a lot over their careers.

Rathman made a name for himself in the Bay Area as a 49ers’ back who was a punishing hitter, sure footed runner that could catch out of the backfield. He was everything the 49ers wanted in a fullback and everything that Roger Craig could have hoped for in a lead blocker. Today, Rathman is rarely talked about in connection with the success of the organization. But make no mistake; he played an extremely large role in it.

I also think a huge reason Craig and Rathman are not mentioned in connection with the 49ers success is because, you take the Green Bay Packers and you think of Taylor and Hourning running the power sweep. You think of Vince Lombardi on the blackboard in his Brooklyn-ese accent, “What we wanna get is a seal here and a seal here. And run this play in the alley.” You think of the 49ers and it’s about Montana orchestrating the offense with pinpoint precision and poise. Whereas you don’t think of the role Craig and Rathman played in punishing defenders in their wake.

In fact, I would argue that the biggest misconception of the WCO is that it’s a “finesse” offense that de-emphasizes the running game. Sure, it might not rely on using the run to set up the pass but using the pass to set up the run is every bit as effective.

Roger Craig belongs in the NFL Hall-of-Fame

Bleacherreport.com hit a nerve with me.

The internet site published a story in Wednesday’s edition on the San Francisco 49ers home page arguing that former Nebraska running back Roger Craig deserves to be in the NFL Hall-of-Fame.

This story hits a nerve with me because I grew up in Northern California (Napa, CA to be exact) as a 49er fan. The 49ers became the revered dynasty that most people know them as today when I became old enough to understand football. Keep in mind, I was born in 1972.

San Francisco drafted Craig in 1983 and another former Husker (Tom Rathman) in 1986. I had a great NFL team to root for in the 49ers, they haven’t been relevant since 2002 but I digress. I just needed a good college team to root for – but Cal and Stanford just didn’t do it for me. They still don’t. USC has a great tradition in football. So does UCLA in basketball – but rooting for a Southern California team was a hard sell for me. Well, it still is as much as I respect their tradition. So I became a Husker fan in 1986. I later became a Husker graduate in 1997.

I moved back to Northern California in 1998. Sorry, I can’t bring myself to saying “NoCal” or “SoCal.” That sounds way too damn dorky and juvenile. When I hear people those terms, it sounds like a pipsqueak that has not reached puberty yet.

Back to Craig for just a moment. Well, for the rest of this commentary. Bleacherreport.com chronicled how Craig was 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.

Marshall Faulk achieved the 1,000-1,000 club status as a member of the St. Louis Rams in 1999 but is widely received a slamdunk choice for the Hall-of-Fame mostly because he totaled 12,279 rushing yards in his 13 year career. Keep in mind; rushing for 10,000 yards is normally viewed as a right of passage to the Hall-of-Fame. Craig, however, had to run on muddy fields at Candlestick Park in December while Faulk played his entire career in a dome-stadium on the Astoturf.

Craig rushed for 8,189 yards but had just two 1,000 yard rushing seasons. He also added 4,911 more yards as a receiver on 566 catches, scoring 73 touchdowns (56 running, 17 receiving) in the process while playing both fullback and running back. He also had to share carries with Wendell Tyler and Tom Rathman.

His final memory to some 49er fans is a costly fumble that enabled the New York Giants to beat San Francisco 15-13 in the 1991 NFC Championship game. Some 49er fans I have spoken to have said, “Well, if Craig didn’t fumble the 49ers would have Threepeated as Super Bowl Champs.” Sorry, wouldn’t have happened.

Keep in mind, quarterback Joe Montana got knocked out of that game thanks to Giants defensive Leonard Marshall’s crushing blow. Steve Young, who later went on to have a Hall-of-Fame career replaced Montana. Let’s face it, Young could not have been trusted in a big game then. Heck, he was a hit or miss proposition in a big game after he became an All-Pro and NFL MVP in 1992.

Again, Craig might not have the gaudy rushing stats of say Faulk or Tiki Barber. However, with Craig’s hybrid style of playing running back, you have to look beyond numbers and see how he revolutionized the game as we know it today. When you watch NFL running backs like say Bryan Westbrook, LaDanion Tomlinson or Reggie Bush operate as dual threats – just remember, they owe a debt of gratitude to Craig because he started the change of a trend where the running back primarily carried the ball. As opposed to carry, catch AND pick up blitzes.

And oh, by the way, Craig has three Super Bowl rings, two more than Faulk, Westbrook, Barber, Tomlinson and Bush combined.