Christian McCaffrey entered the NFL record books after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of their Week 7 Monday Night Football game against the Minnesota Vikings. That rushing score gave the San Francisco 49ers running back a touchdown in 16 consecutive games, playoffs included.

No NFL player has scored a touchdown in that many games in succession. John Riggins and O.J. Simpson shared the record 15 games. Riggins had 24 total touchdowns during his run with the then-Washington Redskins, while Simpson had 24 for the Buffalo Bills.

McCaffrey’s three-yard rushing touchdown with a minute left in the first half put San Francisco on the board. Unfortunately, they lost the game, 22-17, despite McCaffrey getting a 35-yard touchdown catch later in the game. The former first-round draft pick finished the game against Minnesota with 96 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns.

These feats are more impressive, given he was nursing an oblique injury. But his constant production despite the handicaps makes him a potent fantasy football option. His 2023 Week 7 production translates to 22.6 points in PPR mode. McCaffrey is averaging 24.4 fantasy points per game through seven games.

However, it’s not every week that he scores a rushing touchdown. He failed to register one in Week 6 against the Cleveland Browns but had a receiving touchdown in that defeat.

Regardless of who the 49ers starting quarterback will be in Week 8, Christian McCaffrey will have a chance to extend his record against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals surrender 18.4 fantasy points per game to running backs, ranking 16th through seven weeks. They also give up 142.8 rushing yards per game, the fourth-worst in the league.

While McCaffrey holds the record for most consecutive games with a touchdown, he’s still five games short of LaDainian Tomlinson’s record of most regular season games with a touchdown. The 49ers’ running back is at 13, tied with Riggins, Todd Gurley, George Rogers, and Jerry Rice.

The former Stanford standout has 598 rushing yards, 228 receiving yards, and 11 touchdowns (eight rushing) through Week 7 of the 2023 NFL season. He had 746 rushing yards, 464 receiving yards, and ten touchdowns in 11 games for the 49ers last year.

-Lance Fernandez