'I Made a Mistake': Demercado, Cardinals Understand Magnitude of 4th Quarter Miscue

With a burst of speed, nothing stood between Emari Demercado and the end zone. The Arizona Cardinals were about to be up 28-6 in the fourth quarter, and it seemed like Arizona was on their way to a much-needed victory.

But that didn’t end up being the case.

That’s because Demercado carelessly flipped the ball into the air as he was crossing the goal line, and after review, it was revealed that the running back let go of the ball before it crossed the plane.

In what has been described as “the dumbest play in football” for years, the joke was now on the Cardinals and Demercado. And for good reason, as it was not only a boneheaded move, it was the spark that the Titans needed to come back and defeat Arizona.

If Demercado had simply held onto the ball for a fraction of a second longer, we’d be talking about a 3-2 Arizona team, but because Demercado fumbled the ball into the end zone, Tennessee was able to stun the Cardinals in heartbreaking fashion.

MORE: What Went Right, Wrong in Cardinals' Last-Minute Stunner vs. Titans

Demercado takes responsibility for mistake

Oct 5, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back Emari Demercado (31) runs the ball with Tennessee Titans cornerback L'Jarius Sneed (38) defending during the fourth quarter at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images | Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

After the game, Demercado took full responsibility for his game-changing miscue. That won’t come as much of a surprise, as who else would be to blame, but Arizona’s running back was still apologetic following the loss.

“I made a mistake, really no excuse,” he said, putting it simply.

And he’s right, there wasn’t an excuse for what happened in the fourth quarter at State Farm Stadium. Demercado’s mistake was a disaster, and he fully understands that.

“I’ve just got to be better,” Demercado mentioned, but he’s ready to move on.

He realizes that there’s nothing that can be done about it now, saying: “Just got to keep pushing. You just have to. Can’t get it back. Nothing I can do about it, so why keep holding onto it?”

Well, Demercado is content on not holding onto his embarrassing moment, similar to the way that he didn’t hold onto the ball before crossing the goal line. It was a brutal mistake and gave Tennessee the momentum it needed to execute a comeback.

After Demercado flipped the ball into the end zone for a touchback, Tennessee scored a touchdown. And then after an Arizona three-and-out, Tennessee scored a touchdown on another puzzling mistake.

With Dedrion Taylor-Demerson fumbling the ball after an interception, the Titans recovered in the end zone, spiraling the highlight-reel errors out of proportion.

All other mistakes throughout the game don’t fall on Demercado, and one single play never defines a game, but with a mistake like Demercado made, it’s no surprise that the bulk of the blame is being put on him.

His fate with the organization is certainly in question, and it’s easy to understand why. Demercado simply couldn’t do what he did on Sunday afternoon. We’ve seen it a couple of times this season, but that’s no excuse — he just has to be better, and it seems like he understands that.

Demercado’s fumble was a game-changer

It was clear that Demercado’s failed touchdown run was the turning point in the matchup, and other members of the Cardinals organization took notice.

“It would've been a two- to three-score game. That’s probably game over, but that happened,” quarterback Kyler Murray said postgame.

“It definitely gave them a sense of life, of hope, which you can't give teams in the NFL. It's the National Football League. Everyone's too good. It's too even. When you get the opportunity to put a team away, you have to. And we didn't do that.”

It obviously wasn’t just Demercado’s mistake that resulted in Arizona’s defeat, but it got the ball rolling, which is why not scoring that touchdown was so critical. Like Murray said, scoring the TD would’ve likely put the Titans away, but the opportunity was completely missed.

It was a shocking error, one that you see on social media from time to time, but you never expect it to happen to you or your team. That’s the reality the Cardinals had to live with, and when faced with adversity after the fact, they couldn’t respond.

“Never in a million years would I think that Emari would do that, but obviously we all make mistakes. He's gonna take that on the chin. He understands that. But at the end of the day, we all have to be better,” Murray explained.

After the play, Will Hernandez and Paris Johnson Jr. were quick to console Demercado, but the team as a whole understood that was a mistake Arizona couldn’t afford to make. Head coach Jonathan Gannon was irate, but after the game he shared his thoughts on the play.

“It’s never about one play. We have coaching points that I'm not going to tell you guys now,” he said.

In an instant, a 28-6 lead vanished just minutes after it was put up on the scoreboard, and with that, the Cardinals hit a new low on their now three-game losing streak.

Emari Demercado isn’t the only one at fault, but his miscue has been the center of attention since Joey Slye’s field goal went through the uprights to hand Arizona a 22-21 loss to the Titans.