Emari Demercado Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Cardinals RB Trey Benson carried eight times for 35 yards and caught five balls for 19 more in Thursday night's game vs. the Seahawks, the first this season without RB James Conner. Arizona went pass-heavy in this one, finishing the game with 41 pass attempts vs. just 12 non-QB runs. Benson looked good when he got the rock, averaging 4.4 yards per carry against a stout run defense. And he drew five targets for a nice 12.2% share. But he lost the majority of obvious passing-down snaps to RB Emari Demercado. Per Pro Football Focus, Demercado out-snapped Benson seven to one on third downs. Demercado also played 16 of the 17 snaps in the two-minute offense, with RB Michael Carter getting the other.

The Cardinals believe RB James Conner's right ankle injury is season-ending, although that prognosis isn't yet official, according to ESPN's Josh Weinfuss. It certainly looked like a season-ender when Conner had to be carted off the field in the loss to the 49ers. We should get final confirmation on Monday.

Update: ESPN's Adam Schefter now confirms that Conner will need season-ending surgery. "The injury is considered 'severe,' even if the team does not yet know the full extent of the damage," Schefter adds.

Cardinals RB James Conner tallied 16 carries for 110 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's win over New England. He caught all five targets for 28 yards.

Cardinals RB James Conner ran 18 times for 107 yards. He also caught all three targets for 12 yards. The downside was that RBs Emari Demercado and Trey Benson scored TDs while Conner was held out of the end zone.

Cardinals RB James Conner got just 9 carries and 1 target in Sunday's loss to the Lions. He turned those limited opportunities into a mere 17 rushing yards and an 8-yard catch.

Cardinals RB James Conner stayed busy in Sunday's close loss to Buffalo. He handled 16 of 19 team RB attempts and 4 of 7 backfield targets.

Cardinals RBs Trey Benson, Michael Carter, and Emari Demercado are battling it out for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. Demercado has been subbing in for James Conner during first-team work, while Benson and Carter have worked with the second team.

Cardinals RB Emari Demercado (toe) is active for today’s game vs. the Rams. It’ll be his first action since Week 8. RB Michael Carter will also make his Arizona debut today, while RB Keaontay Ingram is a healthy scratch. James Conner should still operate as the Cardinals’ clear lead back.

The Cardinals have claimed former Jets RB Michael Carter off waivers. That gives Arizona a back who has averaged 2.4 receptions per game since he entered the league in 2021. Carter figures to work into some rushing role as well. But his greatest impact is likely to come in the passing game. The Cardinals had already favored pulling RB James Conner off the field for some passing situations, using Emari Demercado earlier this season. Week 10 found them giving the combo of Keaontay Ingram and Tony Jones Jr. nearly as many routes as Conner (13-10) in his return game. Carter brings more proven receiving ability than all of those RBs and could further cut into Conner's receiving. That doesn't doom the Arizona starter but hurts his weekly stability, especially when his team falls behind. Carter isn't likely to deliver much fantasy value the rest of the way and should be no more than a low-level PPR stash. You can drop Demercado if you haven't already. Conner remains a low-end RB2 option. Check our Week 11 RB rankings to see where he sits for the matchup with Houston.

Cardinals RB James Conner claimed 16 of 19 RB carries Sunday in his return from the knee injury that landed him on IR for four games. Conner took those for 73 yards (4.6 per rush) but watched QBs Kyler Murray and Clayton Tune claim the team's two rushing scores. No Cardinals RB drew a target, but Conner's 13 pass routes led the position and marked a 36% route rate. That last number marks potential trouble once RB Emari Demercado returns to health. But Conner can help fantasy lineups even just as lead rusher and part-time backfield receiver going forward. Arizona gets a solid RB-scoring matchup with Houston in Week 11.

Cardinals RB James Conner (knee) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. the Falcons. He was limited in practice all week after being designated to return from IR. HC Jonathan Gannon said Friday that Conner is “trending in the right direction” to play this weekend. We’ll look for further updates on Conner’s status – and how much work he might be in for in his first action since Week 5. RB Emari Demercado (toe) has been ruled out for Sunday’s game.

Cardinals RB James Conner (knee) was limited in Wednesday's practice. He's seemingly on track to return for this weekend's game vs. the Falcons, but we'll keep an eye on his status over the next few days. RB Emari Demercado (toe) remained sidelined on Wednesday after missing last weekend's game.

The Cardinals have officially designated RB James Conner to return from IR. That allows Conner to practice with the team this week. Arizona now has three weeks to decide whether to return him to the active roster. Signs have pointed to Conner returning to game action this week against the Falcons. We'll watch the RB's status throughout the week.

Cardinals RB Emari Demercado (toe) missed practice all week and has been ruled out for Sunday's game vs. the Browns. RB Damien Williams landed on IR earlier this week, so Arizona is down to RBs Keaontay Ingram and Tony Jones. The Cardinals are 10-point road underdogs with a 14.25-point implied total against the Browns' 8th-ranked RB defense, so you're best off avoiding this backfield in fantasy lineups.

Cardinals RB Emari Demercado (toe) missed his second straight practice on Thursday. He's seemingly in danger of missing this weekend's game vs. the Browns. RB Damien Williams was placed on IR earlier this week, leaving Keaontay Ingram and Tony Jones as Arizona's healthy RBs. We'll update Demercado's status again tomorrow.