Emari Demercado

Emari Demercado (born January 20, 1999) is an American professional football running back for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Saddleback before transferring to TCU and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cardinals after the 2023 NFL draft.

Emari Demercado

No. 31 – Arizona Cardinals
Position:	Running back
Personal information
Born:	(1999-01-20) January 20, 1999 (age 26) Inglewood, California, U.S.
Height:	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight:	215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:	Downey (Downey, California)
College:	Saddleback (2017) TCU (2018–2022)
Undrafted:	2023
Career history
Arizona Cardinals (2023–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2024
Rushing yards: 507 Rushing average: 6.2 Rushing touchdowns: 3 Receptions: 37 Receiving yards: 223 Return yards: 64 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

Demercado grew up in Inglewood, California, and attended Century Community Charter School in the heart of Inglewood. He also attended Downey High School. He committed to play college football at Saddleback College, a junior college in Mission Viejo, California.^[1] He is of Jamaican descent.^[2]

College career

Demercado played one year at Saddleback under head coach Mark McElroy, rushing for 1,026 yards and 15 touchdowns and bringing in 54 receptions for 443 yards and two touchdowns.^[3] On May 6, 2018, he committed to Texas Christian University (TCU).^[4]

Demercado played for five years at TCU and racked up 1,615 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry and 40 receptions for 277 yards and a touchdown.^[5] His best season came in 2022 where he recorded 121 carries for 681 yards and six touchdowns and had 13 catches for 65 yards and a touchdown.^[5] In TCU's first playoff game, Demercado rushed for a career-high 150 yards and a touchdown.^[6] He also rushed for 59 yards in the National Championship Game.^[7]

After the season Demercado declared for the 2023 NFL draft.^[8]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
5 ft 9+3⁄8 in (1.76 m)	213 lb (97 kg)	32+5⁄8 in (0.83 m)	9+1⁄2 in (0.24 m)	4.44 s	1.58 s	2.56 s	4.15 s	7.00 s	32.0 in (0.81 m)	9 ft 11 in (3.02 m)	19 reps
All values from Pro Day[9]

After not being selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, Demercado signed with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent.^[10] On August 29, 2023, the Cardinals announced that he had made the initial 53-man roster.^[11] In Week 5 against the Bengals, Demercado had his first professional rushing touchdown in the 34–20 loss.^[12] He appeared in 14 games and made two starts in the 2023 season, finishing with 58 carries for 284 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns to go with 21 receptions for 119 receiving yards.^[13]