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William Hernandez[1] (born September 2, 1995) is an American professional football guard for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UTEP Miners.
 Hernandez at 2017 C-USA Media Days | |||||||
| No. 76 – Arizona Cardinals | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | 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) | ||||||
| College: | UTEP (2013–2017) | ||||||
| NFL draft: | 2018 / round: 2 / pick: 34 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
| Roster status: | Injured reserve | ||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2024 | |||||||
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Hernandez was born to a Mexican family in Las Vegas, Nevada.[2] He 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.[3] As a senior, 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.[4]
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.[5] Outside of football, Hernandez also lettered in track, powerlifting, wrestling, and soccer.
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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.[6] Although UTEP went 0-12 and were ranked dead last in the FBS in 2017, Hernandez nonetheless was named to the All-Conference USA offensive line, and was called the "sole bright spot on a very dismal season".[7] He was also invited to the College Football All-Star Challenge, and also participated in the NFL Combine.[8]
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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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 Combine[9][10] | ||||||||||||
New York Giants
The New York Giants selected Hernandez in the second round (34th overall) of the 2018 NFL draft.[11] Hernandez was the second guard drafted in 2018, behind Notre Dame's Quenton Nelson (sixth overall).[12]
On May 12, 2018, the Giants signed Hernandez to a four-year, $7.45 million contract that included $5.08 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $3.49 million.[13]
Hernandez was named the Giants starting left guard to start 2018, starting all 16 games and was named to the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team.[14]
On October 29, 2020, Hernandez was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Giants after he tested positive for COVID-19.[15][16] On November 10, he returned to the active roster.[17] 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.[18]
Arizona Cardinals
On March 28, 2022, the Arizona Cardinals signed Hernandez to a one-year contract.[19] In Week 4 game against the Carolina Panthers Hernandez was ejected in the fourth quarter for making contact with an official.[20] He was placed on injured reserve on November 9 with a pectoral injury.[21] He was activated on December 17.
On March 15, 2023, Hernandez signed a two-year contract extension with the Cardinals, worth up to $9 million, with $4.5 million fully guaranteed.[22][23] He maintained his starting right guard job, starting every game in 2023.
Hernandez returned as a starter in 2024, starting each of Arizona's first 5 games before going down with a knee injury in week 5 against the San Francisco 49ers. On October 7, 2024, it was announced that the injury was season–ending, and he was placed on injured reserve.[24]
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