San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey said he was caught off guard by an Australian slang term during a haircut in Melbourne, days before his team beat the Los Angeles Rams 27-7 in the NFL's first regular season game held in Australia.
McCaffrey told reporters he was getting a haircut a few days before the game when one of the barbers looked at him and said, "Looks cracker." He said he had no idea what the phrase meant and asked the barber to repeat himself.
Teammate George Kittle laughed as McCaffrey recounted the exchange. McCaffrey said he told the barber, "Sorry, what did you say? I didn't know what it meant."
In Australia, "cracker" is a slang term of endearment used to describe something great or very good. In the United States, the same word carries a very different meaning, functioning as a racial slur directed at white people with origins as a derogatory term for poor whites in the Antebellum South.
McCaffrey said he found the mix-up funny once he understood what the barber meant. "I guess that means it looks good, but that was funny," he said. "He said it again, I said, 'Dude, I hear that every Sunday.' That was good, we had a good moment. I enjoy all the slang."
McCaffrey's performance in Melbourne
The game marked the second contest of the 2026 NFL season and the league's first regular season matchup staged in Australia. San Francisco arrived in the country more than a week ahead of kickoff to acclimate, while the Rams did not arrive as early.
McCaffrey finished with ten carries for 68 yards and five catches for 20 yards, contributing 88 yards from scrimmage in the 27-7 win over the Niners' NFC West rivals. He had fewer carries than rookie backup Kaelon Black, who is out of Indiana, though McCaffrey gained more total yards. The performance came after an offseason in which McCaffrey was limited by injury.
Shanahan on balancing the backfield
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said both running backs "both ran really hard and really well," adding that the 30-year-old McCaffrey dealt with cramping during the game.
Shanahan said balancing carries between the two backs had been the plan heading into the game, saying, "That was the goal for us coming into this, trying to balance it out more."
What's next for the 49ers
McCaffrey and the 49ers will have three extra days of rest to readjust to Pacific Time before hosting the Miami Dolphins on September 20 in their home opener.
