Will Hernandez bringing secret weapon to Cardinals OL
Aug 29, 2024, 8:16 PM
(Tyler Drake/Arizona Sports)
(Tyler Drake/Arizona Sports)
TEMPE — The people have spoken. It’s happening.
Arizona Cardinals offensive lineman Will Hernandez’s training camp mustache is moving onto the regular season.
Look out, Buffalo. It’s basically a game changer.
The camp ‘stache is here to stay for Arizona Cardinals OL Will Hernandez.
“Gotta give the people what they want!” pic.twitter.com/1jkZXgs752
— Cardinals Corner (@AZCardsCorner) August 29, 2024
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“I just wanted to switch it up with something new and then it just kind of hit honestly,” Hernandez said Thursday. “All the guys loved it, created a lot of camaraderie, a lot of good times.
“It was funny actually, a bunch of people started messaging me about it, really taking the time out of their day to let me know that they liked the mustache. I was like, ‘You know what? You gotta give the people what they want.'”
But as with every change, there’s going to be critics.
Hernandez — much like head coach Jonathan Gannon when talking about Arizona’s pass rushers — isn’t paying attention to the noise, especially knowing what’s next in his ‘stache’s evolution.
“It’s mainly positive. There’s been some negative, but we don’t listen to that. They love it,” Hernandez said of the offensive line room. “I keep telling them there’s a final form. It’s not there yet. There’s actually nothing in it right now. There’s a lot of room for improvement.”
Arizona will take any added boost it can get along an offensive line that is expected to block for a top-tier rushing attack on top of keeping quarterback Kyler Murray upright.
That last part is especially important given what Hernandez is seeing out of Murray this year.
“This is the most locked in I’ve ever seen him since I’ve been here,” Hernandez. “I’ve gotten to know him so much more over the years — even more on a personal level — and I definitely believe in him.
“I’ve seen a change in a positive direction. I have his back 100% no matter what, but it makes me want to play even harder for a guy like that.”
