Will Hernandez spent the past three seasons with the Cardinals, starting every game he played. An ACL tear moved him out of Arizona’s lineup early last season, and the veteran guard remains a free agent.
The Cardinals still have Hernandez on their radar, however. They brought him in for a recent visit, per AZCardinals.com’s Darren Urban. The team has the recently re-signed Evan Brown in place at left guard but a question at the other spot. Hernandez returning to full strength in late July could provide an answer, though no signing has happened yet.
A former Giants second-round pick, Hernandez signed two Cardinals contracts since his New York rookie deal expired. Initially catching on for a near-veteran-minimum deal in 2022, Hernandez re-signed on a two-year, $9MM pact in 2023. Hernandez started 13 games in 2022 and 17 a year later, being a priority despite the Cardinals changing regimes in that span.
Pro Football Focus graded Hernandez as a top-30 guard in each of his first two Cardinals seasons. Last season brought a similar graded, albeit on just 280 offensive snaps. Overall, the UTEP product has made 91 career starts and appears likely to find a home somewhere before Week 1. This will be Hernandez’s age-30 season.
After Hernandez went down, the Cards turned to Trystan Colon-Castillo and Isaiah Adams at right guard. Colon-Castillo logged 372 snaps at the position, while Adams — a 2024 third-round pick — made 444. Adams started Arizona’s final five games, though Urban previously pointed to a late-summer addition. Hernandez would obviously qualify at this point, and he has two seasons in Drew Petzing‘s system.
The Cardinals’ third-round investment in Adams would point to the Cardinals wanting him in the RG role, and he entered camp in pole position. The Cardinals also have free agency addition Royce Newman, a 24-game Packers starter, as an option. A Hernandez return would certainly change the equation, and this visit puts a reunion on the radar.