On the first play of Sunday’s blowout win against the Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey endured a very familiar experience: His facemask was grabbed.
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This was the third straight game where the star player was grabbed there during a tackle attempt. Sunday, it was Dallas safety Donovan Wilson; the week before, it was Arizona linebacker Ezekiel Turner; and the game before that, it was New York linebacker Jihad Ward.
At best, this is a string of bad luck that comes with the territory of being a running back in the NFL, constantly battling in the trenches to get yards for your team.