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Is Michael Carter or Emari Demercado the Cardinals’ RB to start with Trey Benson ruled out vs. the Titans?

Is Michael Carter or Emari Demercado the Cardinals’ RB to start with Trey Benson ruled out vs. the Titans?

DraftKings Fantasy Advice Season Long NFL Rail

Updated:

By: Alex Hunter

UPDATE: Trey Benson has been placed on injured reserve due to his knee injury.

Benson ($5,700) is the Cardinals’ top back with James Conner (foot) done for the season, but Benson is now dealing with a knee injury and his status for Week 5 is “in question”, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Arizona is hosting the 0-4 Titans on Sunday and if Benson was out, the Cardinals would be left with Demercado ($4,700) and Carter ($4,000) at running back.

Carter started at running back for Arizona in Week 18 of last season with Conner, Benson and Demercado all sidelined and Carter produced 15.9 FPTS with the starting role. However, with Demercado now healthy, he would likely play ahead of Carter if Benson was inactive this Sunday, as Demercado has been the Cardinals’ clear No.3 back behind Conner and Benson this season.

Demercado has been active for all four of Arizona’s game this season and with Conner inactive for the first time this season this past Thursday vs. the Seahawks, Demercado scored 10.1 FPTS thanks to a receiving touchdown. The 26-year-old was Benson’s clear backup, as Demercado logged a season-high 38.8% of the snaps and saw two carries, including one redzone rush. Additionally, Demercardo ran a route on 33% of his team’s dropbacks and saw a target on 12% of those routes. Meanwhile, Carter was active for just the first time this season and he only saw one carry while logging just 5.9% of the snaps.

If Benson is inactive, this backfield would likely be around a 60/40 split in favor of Demercado and Sunday presents a terrific spot vs. Tennessee. Not only are the Titans giving up the seventh-most yards per rush this season (4.8), but Arizona is a 7.5-point home favorite for this contest and the club carries a healthy 24.5-point implied team total on DraftKings Sportsbook. In this near perfect setup, Demercado could see 15+ touches if Benson is out and Demercado would be a solid RB3/FLEX play for season-long leagues and a compelling punt play for DFS on DraftKings at only $4,700.

Alex Hunter
Alex Hunter is an avid DFS player and sports handicapper, who has been a proud member of the DraftKings Network team since 2020. He is a data-driven analyst, who earned his bachelor’s degree in communications at Worcester State University and has been in the sports content business for nearly a decade, covering the NBA, NFL and PGA TOUR. Alex is a diehard Boston Celtics fan, who loves to be on the golf course when he isn’t grinding lineups or producing content. For all of Alex’s work or if you need any lineup advice, be sure to follow him @Hunta512 on X.
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