"They don't treat us like humans": Emari Demercado claps back at fans over unsympathetic behavior after Marshawn Kneeland's death

Arizona Cardinals running back and kickoff returner Emari Demercado called out fans' unsympathetic behavior as the NFL community mourns the death of Marshawn Kneeland. The Dallas Cowboys second-year defensive end died in an apparent suicide on Wednesday.

Amid the grief, Cowboys safety Juanyeh Thomas addressed insensitive fan messages on X on Thursday.

"Stay outta my DM with the “this if this doesn’t spark Yalls defense”… I could care less about that shit right now… I just lost a brother, that I bled , sweated and cried tears with… Yall so caught up in this sports stuff, that y’all Mfs forget we just like y’all… But I expect that from y’all. . ." Thomas tweeted.

Juanyeh Thomas

@STG_Yeh1

Stay outta my DM with the “this if this doesn’t spark Yalls defense”… I could care less about that shit right now… I just lost a brother , that I bled , sweated and cried tears with… Yall so caught up in this sports stuff , that y’all Mfs forget we just like y’all… But I

Demercado echoed the sentiment, quoting Thomas’ post.

"They don’t treat us like humans, we’re just pawns in the games they watch. Praying for all of yall 🙏🏾," Demercado tweeted.

The two exposed a harsh truth that grief is neither a performance motivator nor a narrative device for fans. Their messages highlighted how professional athletes deal with loss behind the scenes, far beyond the arena of competition.

Kneeland’s death prompted broader reflection within the league about mental health, support resources and the humanity of athletes.

Emari Demercado rebounds after early-season mistake, with Jonathan Gannon admitting error

Emari Demercado is showing signs of a comeback after a difficult start to the season. He faced backlash following a fumble near the goal line against the Tennessee Titans in Week 5. Demercado was also criticized after a sideline confrontation with Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon.

During the Week 9 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys, he rushed for 79 yards on 14 carries (4.1 yards per attempt). Demercado also executed a smart slide to preserve the clock late in the game. The Cardinals defeated the Cowboys 27-17.

Gannon addressed yelling at Demercado following his costly fumble andthe coach admitted his mistake during the postgame presser.

“I woke up this morning and didn’t feel great about it, honestly,” Gannon said. “I just told (the team) I kind of let the moment of what happened get the better of me there. Obviously, I try to be emotionally stable and calm because my job is to solve problems during a game and lead the charge on that. It’s not really who I am, who I want to be.

“So, it’s a mistake by me, and it’s just like everybody in there, everybody made some type of mistake yesterday, which culminates to why we didn’t win the game, and we can’t let it happen moving forward."

Arizona (3-5) is fourth in the NFC West and is the only team in the division with a losing record.