RB · KC · GWTTKB

Emari Demercado — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 4.86 points per game in 2025, an ADP of 170.2, usage worth 5.

27 years old · 3 seasons of experience · 2023 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.
ADP 170.2
Consensus across 1 books, 0 picks between cheapest and priciest. Cheapest on underdog, priciest on espn.
ESPN170.2
UNDERDOG215.8
FFA301

Draft-room facts

Goes aroundRound 15, pick 2 in a 12-team draft
Positional rankRB97

What we project for 2026

Our board has him at 0.5 points, 0 per game — 3 rushing yards, 0.1 catches. That is RB6, 282 overall.

The range runs from a floor of 0 points per game to a ceiling of 0, with the median at 0. Boom rate 80%, bust rate 10%. The spread is the actual bet, not the middle number.

He goes at 170.2 on consensus and our board has him 282. We rank him 111.8 picks worse than the room drafts him. At that distance it is a fade: we do not want him anywhere near his ADP.

The offense he plays in, 2026

Kansas City Chiefs returns 4 of 6 continuity slots, replacing rb1, oc. Patrick Mahomes at quarterback, Andy Reid as head coach, Eric Bieniemy calling it. The offense projects to 34 pass attempts a game at medium confidence and 25.8 rushes.

In: Justin Fields (qb2), Cyrus Allen (wr5), Andrew Armstrong (wr7), Kenneth Walker III (rb1), Emmett Johnson (rb3), Emari Demercado (rb4). Out: Marquise Brown (wr3), Isiah Pacheco (rb1), Kareem Hunt (rb2).

The projected carry split across the offense:

Kenneth Walker III43.5%
Brashard Smith25.7%
Emari Demercado 24.9%
Emmett Johnson5.8%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

What the offense looks like: Highly relevant offense to own pieces of. Mahomes needs to return to his MVP form to support WR other than Rice, but Kenneth Walker III may be about to feast in KC if he can stay healthy. Of note, if Walker were to suffer an injury, RB Emmett Johnson has a great opportunity to fill in and be a valuable back.

Key additions: OC Eric Bieniemy retuns to Chiefs as OC. Previously served as OC from 2018 - 2022. Add RB Kenneth Walker III in free agency on massive 3 year deal.

Key departures: Isiah Pacheco left Chiefs for Lions in free agency. RB Kareem Hunt is also likely gone from the team. WR Hollywood Brown also left to the Eagles in free agency. Chiefs lost RT Jawaan Taylor in free agency (mid).

Notes: Rashee Rice is slotted to operate as WR1 & holds high value for 2026 season. Mahomes should be recovered from torn ACL. Kelce is in his final season most likely. Xavier Worthy has struggled to produce, could break out, but not looking great right now. Chiefs sign Kenneth Walker III in free agency (reigning superbowl MVP RB from seahawks) and he is set for monster season. Brashard Smith should operate as receiving back and Emmett Johnson will battle for 3rd string back with Emari Demercado.

How the volume number was reached: Same QB Patrick Mahomes returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (34.4 att/g); Regressed 42% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 34 att/g; New OC Eric Bieniemy — pass rate and tempo may shift.

How the carry projection was built

Projected carry share24.9%
Projected carries per game5.3
Projected carries, full season90
Last season, carries per game3.7

That is an increase of 1.6 carries a game against last season, inside a team projection of 25.8 rushing attempts a game.

Basis: prior usage blend. Carry share is the strongest forward predictor we have measured at the position, so this number carries more weight than any efficiency figure on this page.

Offensive environment: KC rates 24.1 against a league average of 23, 1.1 points above it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted run defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season-1.1 · neutral
Weeks 1–6-6 · harder
Weeks 12–17+1.1 · neutral
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)-7.6 · harder

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

What happened when he missed time

From the absence record rather than a depth chart — who actually gained when he was out.

SeasonGames missedMain beneficiaryTheir PPR gain
20233Keaontay Ingram+-2.8

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved +42.2% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as post-spike. The base rate that applies: after a +30% spike, RBs crash the following year 59% of the time (hold 41%). That puts the measured risk of his dynasty value falling sharply over the next year at 59% — a probability drawn from comparable historical seasons, not a prediction, and not a statement about his 2026 scoring.

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 1.7 elite seasons and 2.4 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
DeeJay Dallas20223.178%-21.3%
Rico Dowdle20235.777%+63.9%
Emanuel Wilson20245.675%+49.9%
DeeJay Dallas20213.573%+26.3%
Jeffery Wilson20234.672%-41.3%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 3 gained value, 2 lost it and 0 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

02,000202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2023-05 to 2026-07. From 0 to 1,207, peaking at 1,860.

The player

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game5.9
Week-to-week variation0.8
Boom rate25.9%
Bust rate33.3%
Games missed per season2.7
Injury historyToe, Back, Ankle

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · ARI · 12 games

His best game was Week 10 against SEA — 13.4 PPR on 8 touches and a 9.1% target share, in a game that finished 22-44. His worst was Week 3 against SF at 0, on 3 touches, final score 15-16. Across 12 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 9 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 3.2; in the 6 decided by more, 6.5. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 5 points per game. He scored 4.86, 2% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1NO20-1300000000%0%
3SF15-1600102002.9%11%
4SEA20-2310.122132815%39%
5TEN21-226.100038100%28%
6IND27-310.10101102.6%4%
9DAL27-178.811-1147903.4%40%
10SEA22-4413.4344046409.1%42%
11SF22-41423125805.4%18%
15HOU20-402.12301107.9%11%
16ATL19-26301053003.4%32%
17CIN14-37423951108.6%53%
18LA20-376.7112822903.6%22%

Production

Receptions13
Targets20
Receiving yards101
Carries44
Rushing yards312
Touchdowns1
Points per game4.86
Yards per target5.05
Catch rate65%
Yards per carry7.09

Role

Snap share25%
Target share4.33%
Air-yards share0.46%
WOPR0.068
RACR1.223

Efficiency

Average depth of target0.6
Yards after catch per reception6.5
Yards before catch per reception1.3
Total YAC84
Broken tackles2
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted94
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game-0.13
Rushing EPA per game-0.58

Scoring position

Red-zone targets4
Red-zone target share3.9%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share10%
Expected receiving TDs1.24
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck-0.24
Expected rushing TDs0.59

Who else ate

The offense threw it 648 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Trey McBride27.39%
Michael Wilson20.42%
Marvin Harrison11.83%
Michael Carter7.29%
Elijah Higgins6%
Greg Dortch5.35%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Jacoby Brissett8175.265.185.5%
Kyler Murray434.054.331.98%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 12 games were blowouts, 51.8% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 6.04 in those and 3.22 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2024 · ARI · 13 games

His best game was Week 9 against CHI — 16 PPR on 6 touches and a 10.5% target share, in a game that finished 29-9. His worst was Week 8 against MIA at 0, on 1 touches, final score 28-27. Across 13 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 11 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 1.7; in the 7 decided by more, 6.4. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 3.6 points per game. He scored 4.21, 16.9% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
1BUF28-344.622260006.5%21%
2LA41-104.600024600%11%
3DET13-200.70002700%20%
4WAS14-423.411042404.5%24%
5SF24-2311100003.3%22%
6GB13-3411.45739425021.9%53%
7LAC17-151.400011400%11%
8MIA28-2700100003%12%
9CHI29-9162221459110.5%24%
10NYJ31-62.200032200%12%
12SEA6-161.400011400%16%
13MIN22-232.512331204.7%27%
14SEA18-305.5441500010.5%11%

Production

Receptions16
Targets20
Receiving yards104
Carries24
Rushing yards223
Touchdowns1
Points per game4.21
Yards per target5.2
Catch rate80%
Yards per carry9.29

Role

Snap share20.31%
Target share4.99%
Air-yards share0.68%
WOPR0.08
RACR1.668

Efficiency

Average depth of target1.3
Yards after catch per reception5.9
Yards before catch per reception0.6
Total YAC95
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted88.3
Receiving EPA per game-0.26
Rushing EPA per game0.95

Scoring position

Red-zone targets4
Red-zone target share6%
End-zone target share0%
Expected receiving TDs0.56
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.56
Expected rushing TDs0

Who else ate

The offense threw it 543 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Trey McBride28.11%
Marvin Harrison22.18%
Michael Wilson13.58%
James Conner10.52%
Greg Dortch9.56%
Elijah Higgins4.59%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 13 games were blowouts, 68.7% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 7.52 in those and 1.7 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2023 · ARI · 11 games

His best game was Week 15 against SF — 14 PPR on 7 touches and a 7.9% target share, in a game that finished 29-45. His worst was Week 3 against DAL at 0.2, on 2 touches, final score 28-16. Across 11 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 6 times. In the 3 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 4.4; in the 8 decided by more, 7.5. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 7.2 points per game. He scored 6.66, 7.9% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsCarRushTDTgt%Snap%
2NYG28-312.52271-206.9%12%
3DAL28-160.20002200%18%
4SF16-355.434211309.8%35%
5CIN20-3412.713121045110%77%
6LA9-262.711621102.6%43%
7SEA10-2011.545171358015.2%80%
8BAL24-318.9111207802.8%55%
12LA14-371.500031500%20%
15SF29-451413646417.9%24%
16CHI16-27127840210021.6%38%
17PHI35-311.91390009.7%12%

Production

Receptions21
Targets30
Receiving yards119
Carries58
Rushing yards284
Touchdowns2
Points per game6.66
Yards per target3.97
Catch rate70%
Yards per carry4.9

Role

Snap share37.64%
Target share7.86%
Air-yards share1.04%
WOPR0.125
RACR4.54

Efficiency

Average depth of target0.9
Yards after catch per reception5.2
Yards before catch per reception0.5
Total YAC109
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted76.9
Rushing yards over expected0
Receiving EPA per game-1.36
Rushing EPA per game-0.48

Scoring position

Red-zone targets1
Red-zone target share1.7%
End-zone target share0%
Red-zone carry share4.9%
Goal-line carry share4.5%
Expected receiving TDs0.28
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.28
Expected rushing TDs0.53

Who else ate

The offense threw it 555 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Trey McBride19.63%
Marquise Brown18.7%
Rondale Moore11.48%
Michael Wilson10.74%
Zach Ertz7.96%
Greg Dortch7.59%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Joshua Dobbs7166.2746.76%
Kyler Murray4147.353.939.8%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 11 games were blowouts, 13.1% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 3.2 in those and 4.43 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

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