Will Hernandez

William Hernandez[1] (born September 2, 1995) is an American football guard for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UTEP.

Will Hernandez
refer to caption
Hernandez at 2017 C-USA Media Days
No. 76 – Arizona Cardinals
Position:Guard
Personal information
Born: (1995-09-02) September 2, 1995
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:332 lb (151 kg)
Career information
High school:Chaparral (Las Vegas, Nevada)
College:UTEP (2013–2017)
NFL Draft:2018 / Round: 2 / Pick: 34
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2022
Games played:75
Games started:69
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

High School

Hernandez was a four-year letterer and three-year starter at Chaparral High School in Paradise, Nevada, where he played offensive line, defensive end, and middle linebacker. Will actually quit football after his freshman year to instead work as a manager for his father's construction company, but was talked into rejoining the team before his junior year by his head coach, who saw extreme potential in Hernandez.[2] As a senior, Will Hernandez was an all-Nevada offensive lineman and was an all-conference defensive end; he started all games at right guard, and registered 42 tackles, eight sacks, one interception, five forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries on defense.[3]

A zero-star recruit, Hernandez was recruited very lightly; despite receiving walk-on offers from Nevada, UNLV, and Wyoming, Will accepted an offer from UTEP, the only college to offer him a scholarship.[4] Outside of football, Hernandez also lettered in track, powerlifting, wrestling, and soccer.

College career

After redshirting his first year at UTEP in 2013, Hernandez was immediately named a starter as a redshirt freshman and would start every game for the rest of his collegiate career; 49 games in total from 2014 to 2017. After the 2016 season, Hernandez was a second-team All-American.[5] Although UTEP went 0-12 and were ranked dead last in the FBS in 2017, Will Hernandez nonetheless was named to the All-CUSA offensive line, and was called the "sole bright spot on a very dismal season".[6] He was also invited to the College Football All-Star Challenge, and also participated in the NFL Combine.[7]

Professional career
External video
video icon NFL Draft Profile: Will Hernandez
video icon Will Hernandez's NFL Combine Workout
video icon Hernandez puts up 37 reps on bench press
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 2+3⁄8 in
(1.89 m)		 327 lb
(148 kg)		 32 in
(0.81 m)		 9+7⁄8 in
(0.25 m)		5.15 s1.75 s2.96 s4.70 s7.59 s24 in
(0.61 m)		8 ft 8 in
(2.64 m)		37 reps
All values from NFL Draft[8][9]

New York Giants
Hernandez in a game against the Washington Redskins

The New York Giants selected Hernandez in the second round (34th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[10] Hernandez was the second guard drafted in 2018, behind Notre Dame's Quenton Nelson (sixth overall).[11]

External video
video icon Giants draft Hernandez 34th overall
video icon Jones: "Hernandez will be an instant starter"

On May 12, 2018, the New York Giants signed Hernandez to a four-year, $7.45 million contract that includes $5.08 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $3.49 million.[12]

Hernandez was named the Giants starting left guard to start 2018, starting all 16 games and was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

On October 29, 2020, Hernandez was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Giants after he tested positive for COVID-19.[13][14] On November 10, he returned to the active roster.[15] However, despite his healthy return, he remained a backup for the remainder of the season, losing the starting left guard position to rookie Shane Lemieux.[16]

Arizona Cardinals

On March 28, 2022, the Arizona Cardinals signed Hernandez to a one-year contract.[17] In Week 4 game against the Carolina Panthers Hernandez was ejected in the fourth quarter for making contact with an official.[18] He was placed on injured reserve on November 9 with a pectoral injury.[19] He was activated on December 17.

On March 15, 2023, Hernandez signed a two-year contract extension with the Cardinals.[20]

References
  1. "Will Hernandez on Pro-Football-Reference". rbref.com. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  2. "How Will Hernandez's High School Coach Helped Guide Him To The NFL". Forbes.
  3. "Will Hernandez". UTEP.
  4. "Will Hernandez recruiting profile". 247 Sports.
  5. Bret Bloomquist. "UTEP lands two on All-America football team". El Paso Times.
  6. "C-USA ANNOUNCES FOOTBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS" (PDF). December 5, 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  7. "Will Hernandez set to compete at All-Star Football Challenge". kvia.com.
  8. "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Will Hernandez". nfl.com. March 1, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  9. "Texas-El Paso OG Will Hernandez : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  10. "2018 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  11. Wesseling, Chris (April 27, 2018). "Giants select Will Hernandez with No. 34 overall pick". NFL.com.
  12. "Spotrac.com: Will Hernandez contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  13. "Sources: Giants OL Hernandez has positive test". ESPN.com. October 29, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  14. Schwartz, Paul (October 30, 2020). "Giants' offensive line up in air after Will Hernandez's COVID-19 diagnosis". New York Post. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  15. Eisen, Michael (November 10, 2020). "Giants waive CB Corey Ballentine; Will Hernandez, Dante Pettis activated". Giants.com. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  16. "Shane Lemieux's solid play keeps Will Hernandez on the bench". November 16, 2020.
  17. Urban, Darren (March 28, 2022). "Cardinals Sign Will Hernandez For Offensive Line". Arizonacardinals.com.
  18. Urban, Darren (October 5, 2022). "Will Hernandez Has No Regrets For Helping Teammate Even With Ejection". azcardinals.com.
  19. Urban, Darren (November 9, 2022). "Will Hernandez Goes To IR; Cardinals Claim OL Wyatt Davis". AZCardinals.com.
  20. Urban, Darren (March 15, 2023). "Cardinals Re-Sign Will Hernandez, Ezekiel Turner". AZCardinals.com.
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