FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Tuesday that the team had Emari Demercado circled in the waiver claim window and got him.
Demercado spent five years at TCU in Fort Worth. He arrives with three seasons under Klayton Adams behind him, two of them in Arizona.
“Really excited about him, Newy. This guy’s got, I think, 20 explosives over the last couple years. And some of that’s been with Klayton off some of the G schemes and the counter schemes that they’ve been running,” Schottenheimer said. “Got very good vision. He’s a build-up speed guy that’s got explosive play-making ability. We love his pass protection. He’s a really good pass protector, both understanding the scheme but also in executing the protection principles. I think that’s really important.”
“And then on special teams, he’s been a guy that’s played a number of different roles for the different teams, and so he’s a valued member. And that was one that we were hoping would work out for us in the claim picture. And it did,” Schottenheimer continued. “And he’s a terrific young man, too. And I think not just Klayton, but anybody that’s been around him, Ryan Smith. We had a couple guys in Arizona. They all spoke to the young man. And what a great fit he would be in our locker room, which we obviously hold in high regard as well.”
The Klayton Adams Connection
Adams is in his second season as the Cowboys’ offensive coordinator. He coached the Arizona Cardinals offensive line in 2023 and 2024, Demercado’s first two years in the league.
Demercado went undrafted out of TCU in 2023 and made the Arizona roster that summer. He has 819 career rushing yards on a 6.5 yards-per-carry average with 3 touchdowns, and he has caught 50 passes for 324 yards and 1 touchdown.
He ran for 312 yards last season and missed three games in 2024 with an ankle sprain. He has also returned kicks, with 150 return yards to his name.
Emari Demercado’s Five Years At TCU
Demercado is 27. He grew up in Inglewood, California, and played at Downey High School.
He spent his first college season at Saddleback College, a junior college in Mission Viejo, where he ran for 1,026 yards and 15 touchdowns and caught 54 passes.
Demercado transferred to TCU in 2018 and stayed five years. He finished with 1,615 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on a 4.8 average and caught 40 passes for 277 yards. His best season came in 2022, when he carried 121 times for 681 yards and 6 touchdowns.
How Emari Demercado Reached Dallas
Kansas City signed Demercado this offseason. He carried nine times for 37 yards and caught his only target for 15 yards in an August preseason game before the Chiefs waived him at cutdown.
Dallas claimed Demercado on Monday and waived quarterback Joe Milton III as the corresponding move.
Javonte Williams is the starter in the Dallas backfield. He ran for 1,201 yards and 11 touchdowns last season and signed a three-year extension worth $24 million in the offseason.
Dallas opens the regular season at the New York Giants on Sept. 13. Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is set for 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
