Unlikely odds and an underrated icon

In what was possibly the strangest year ever in the NFL, the Arizona Cardinals have made the Super Bowl.

Before the season began, oddsmakers at the MGM Mirage in Las Vegas had the Cardinals a 60-1 shot to make the big game. As usual, they had one of the worst odds.

However, Arizona and two other teams with worse odds -- Miami Dolphins and Atlanta Falcons -- made the playoffs.

But even with signs of potential success the past couple of years, the Cardinals were at the bottom of the heap when refigured odds came out for teams in the playoffs.

At 40-1 odds, the Cardinals were underdogs in all three of their playoff games so far and are currently 6- or 7-point underdogs to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.

Obviously, instincts don't play out so well in the NFL these days.

Amidst the hype we will be inundated with the next two weeks will be the vote for who will be inducted as the 2009 class to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Back in October, 17 individuals were listed as finalists for induction in 2009.

For me, highlighting the list are Cris Carter, Bruce Smith, Rod Woodson and former Commissioner Paul Tagliabue.

I believe all four of those individuals, along with Derrick Thomas, will be the newest inductees. They all deserve their respective spots in Canton, but there is one player I think should be in that didn't make it to the list of finalists: Roger Craig.

Craig was a major cog in the San Francisco 49ers machine in the mid-late 1980s and has always been an underrated player.

He wasn't an explosive running back by any means, but knew how to best utilize his skills and paved the way for today's multi-threat backs like LaDainian Tomlinson, Marshall Faulk and Brian Westbrook.

In his first seven seasons, he compiled 6,625 rushing yards on 1,545 carries (4.3 yards per carry), 483 catches for 4,241 receiving yards and 65 touchdowns.

Also, in 1985, Craig became the first player to have both 1,000 rushing and receiving yards in the same season -- 1,050 rushing and 1,016 receiving. Only Faulk has been able to match that feat.

That same year, he became the first, and only, running back to lead the lead in receptions with 92, a number which has since been surpassed by Larry Centers (twice) and Tomlinson. Add on top of those numbers the fact he was the first player to score three touchdowns in a single Super Bowl only enhances his credentials.

When it comes to yearly honors, Craig has his share of those too.

He was voted to the Pro Bowl and as an All-Pro four times, was a part of three Super Bowl champion teams, made the playoffs every year of his career and in 1988, he was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

Some may argue his 8,189 career rushing yards aren't enough to merit Hall of Fame status, and that may be true. However, his receiving totals bump him up to 13,143 total career yards, which aren't necessarily massive, but extremely impressive for someone who split time in the backfield during his first four years in the league.

He wasn't worthy of being a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but it's been 15 years since he retired and time for Roger Craig to get his gold jacket and a bust in Canton.