Will Hernandez
William "Will" 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.
![]() Hernandez at 2017 C-USA Media Days | |||||
No. 76 – Arizona Cardinals | |||||
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Position: | Guard | ||||
Personal information | |||||
Born: | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | September 2, 1995||||
Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||
Weight: | 335 lb (152 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Chaparral (Las Vegas, Nevada) | ||||
College: | UTEP (2013–2017) | ||||
NFL Draft: | 2018 / Round: 2 / Pick: 34 | ||||
Career history | |||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||
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Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2022 | |||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
College career
After redshirting his first year at UTEP in 2013, Hernandez started all 49 games from 2014 to 2017. After the 2016 season, Hernandez was a second-team All-American.[2] After the 2017 season, Hernandez was named to the C-USA first team.[3] He was also invited to the College Football All-Star Challenge.[4]
Professional career
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Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
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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 s | 1.75 s | 2.96 s | 4.70 s | 7.59 s | 24 in (0.61 m) | 8 ft 8 in (2.64 m) | 37 reps | |
All values from NFL Draft[5][6] |
New York Giants

The New York Giants selected Hernandez in the second round (34th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. Hernandez was the second guard drafted in 2018, behind Notre Dame's Quenton Nelson (sixth overall).[7]
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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.[8]
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.[9][10] On November 10, he returned to the active roster.[11] 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.[12]
Arizona Cardinals
On March 28, 2022, the Arizona Cardinals signed Hernandez to a one-year contract.[13] In Week 4 game against the Carolina Panthers Hernandez was ejected in the fourth quarter for making contact with an official.[14] He was placed on injured reserve on November 9, 2022.[15] He was activated on December 17.
On March 15, 2023, Hernandez signed a two-year contract extension with the Cardinals.[16]
References
- "Will Hernandez on Pro-Football-Reference". rbref.com. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- Bret Bloomquist. "UTEP lands two on All-America football team". El Paso Times.
- http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/conferenceusa.com/documents/2017/12/5/2017_All_Conference_Teams.pdf?id=8758
- "Will Hernandez set to compete at All-Star Football Challenge". kvia.com.
- "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Will Hernandez". nfl.com. March 1, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- "Texas-El Paso OG Will Hernandez : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
- Wesseling, Chris (April 27, 2018). "Giants select Will Hernandez with No. 34 overall pick". NFL.com.
- "Spotrac.com: Will Hernandez contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
- "Sources: Giants OL Hernandez has positive test". ESPN.com. October 29, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- 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.
- Eisen, Michael (November 10, 2020). "Giants waive CB Corey Ballentine; Will Hernandez, Dante Pettis activated". Giants.com. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
- "Shane Lemieux's solid play keeps Will Hernandez on the bench". November 16, 2020.
- Urban, Darren (March 28, 2022). "Cardinals Sign Will Hernandez For Offensive Line". Arizonacardinals.com.
- Urban, Darren (October 5, 2022). "Will Hernandez Has No Regrets For Helping Teammate Even With Ejection". azcardinals.com.
- Urban, Darren (November 9, 2022). "Will Hernandez Goes To IR; Cardinals Claim OL Wyatt Davis". AZCardinals.com.
- Urban, Darren (March 15, 2023). "Cardinals Re-Sign Will Hernandez, Ezekiel Turner". AZCardinals.com.