Arizona Cardinals running back Emari Demercado appeared to have a 72-yard touchdown in his team’s Week 5 game against the Tennessee Titans.
Instead, the third-year pro made an unfathomable mistake near the goal-line that negated the score.
After breaking free from the defense, Demercado slowed down as he approached the end-zone. He then appeared to reach the ball forward just ahead of the goal-line.
In the process, Demercado lost control of the ball just before it crossed the goal-line. It bounced through the back of the end-zone – as the Titans’ trailing defender, L’Jarius Sneed, was quicky to point out – resulting in a turnover and a touchback.
Below is a look at the play:
The Cardinals would have extended their lead to 27-6, and three possessions, had Demercado scored. Instead, the Titans went on to score a touchdown on the possession following Demercado’s fumble and cut Arizona’s lead to nine. The Titans went on to rally for a 22-21 win.
Demercado’s gaffe came just a week after Indianapolis Colts receiver Adonai Mitchell made a similar mistake against the Los Angeles Rams. Mitchell nearly logged a 76-yard touchdown before dropping the ball at the 1-yard line.
Mitchell’s miscue was rewarded by receiving a reduced role in the Colts’ Week 5 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.
As for Demercado, the Cardinals gave him just one more touch during the remainder of their game against the Titans. The 26-year-old was already operating as the team’s third-string running back behind Michael Carter and Zonovan ‘Bam’ Knight, and his 71-yard carry was just his second carry of the game.
How Emari Demercado, teammates reacted to fumble
Meanwhile, Demercado acknowledged after the game he thought often about his fumble during the remainder of the contest despite his best efforts to flush it.
‘You just have to,’ Demercado said of moving on from the mistake, per Cardinals team reporter Zach Gershman. ‘Can’t get it back. Nothing I can do about it, so why keep holding on to it?’
Meanwhile, quarterback Kyler Murray offered support for Demercado, praising the running back’s football IQ and calling him a close friend.
‘Never in a million years – I wouldn’t think that Emari would do that,’ Murray told reporters during his postgame news conference. ‘But obviously, we all make mistakes. He’s gonna take that on the chin. He understands that.’
‘At the end of the day, we all gotta be better,’ Murray added. ‘He owns up to that, and we talk about that all the time. But yeah, I’m sure he’s frustrated.’