The Kansas City Chiefs have signed Kenneth Walker III as their main back, but they've added Demercado as a depth player.
The Kansas City Chiefs made a depth signing today as they continue to revamp their running back room, adding Emari Demercado, according to a report written by Ben Levine of ProFootballRumors.com via NFL insider Jordan Schultz. The deal is for one year with terms undisclosed, but it’s probably for an amount close to the veteran minimum given Demercado’s history.
The running back spent last season with the Arizona Cardinals, and he’s one of those players who now lives in infamy on highlight reels for all the wrong reasons. The third-year running back started the season as Arizona’s third running back behind James Conner and Trey Benson, but he stayed in that role even after both suffered season-ending injuries.
The Cardinals discovered why when he finally appeared in Week 5 alongside replacement backs Michael Carter and Bam Knight. Arizona was playing the then-winless Tennessee Titans, and the move looked like a good one when Demercado broke free for what looked like a 72-yard touchdown run.
But Demercado let go of the ball just before he crossed the goal line, which resulted in a touchback and a turnover that gave Tennessee the ball. The Cardinals were leading 21-6 at the time, but they went on to lose the game, 22-21.
The fallout from the play also included a fine of $100K for former Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon, who appeared to shove his running back while yelling at him after the gaffe.
Surprisingly, the 27-year old Demercado had some moments after that. He had 79 rushing yards in Week 9 for the Cardinals, then 104 yards from scrimmage in Week 10. He then sustained a high-ankle sprain, however, and he added just 108 yards in four games in his return, according to Devine.
It’s not exactly clear what the Chiefs are thinking here given their issues with penalties, dropped passes and occasional lack of focus last season. They’ve added Kenneth Walker III in free agency to be their bell-cow back, so Demercado probably won’t see the field much, but he’ll get some competition from running back Brashard Smith after Isiah Pacheco signed with the Detroit Lions yesterday to back up Jahmyr Gibbs.
But running back Kareem Hunt is also unsigned at the moment, so this could be a temporary move to add depth until Hunt’s situation is resolved. Demercado has shown flashes both on the ground and as a pass catcher, so perhaps they’ve seen some things other than that disaster against the Titans to make them believe they can tap into his potential.