Roger Craig is going to Canton. The San Francisco 49ers legend was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2026, the announcement coming during NFL Honors in early February in San Francisco - fittingly, in the city where he built his legend.
Craig enters as a senior selection alongside a headline class, a recognition many felt was long overdue. Over an 11-year career he amassed more than 13,000 yards from scrimmage, won three Super Bowls, and changed the template for what a running back could be.
For a player defined by patience and persistence, the wait to reach the Hall only sharpened the meaning of the moment. The dual-threat back who once did what no one had done before will now be enshrined among the game's immortals.
The bust in Canton will be permanent, but for 49ers fans the image was always fixed: number 33, knees high, ball tucked, moving relentlessly forward.