Tennessee Titans right guard Fernando Carmona Jr. was a mystery to some people going into his rookie NFL season.
That’s life as a fifth-round draft pick.
"I was kind of happy I kind of (was drafted) later," Carmona told The Tennessean. "The money would have been nice to go earlier. But at the end of the day, I felt like I didn't have that much pressure on me. I can just go out there, be free. Nobody knows who I am, so why not go out and make a name for myself? I'm just going out there to show people who Fernando Carmona is.”
Tennessee dug deep to find a starter at right guard in preseason camp and Carmona, a rookie who most expected to be a third-string option, stepped up to win the job. He returned to full practice on Sept. 23 after suffering
a shoulder injury in a 24-20 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2.
With limited depth at his spot, Carmona's absence would have been critical for the Titans (0-2) against the New York Giants (1-1) on Sept. 27 (noon CT, CBS).
Carmona was the Titans’ third-best run-blocker with a 61.4 grade against the Eagles, according to Pro Football Focus. He played all 53 snaps while allowing one pressure and has not been penalized in two games.
Titans coach Robert Saleh noted Carmona's shoulder injury after the Eagles game and didn't have an update the following day, bringing the injury's severity into question. Carmona revealed he played nearly half the game after banging up his shoulder.
“It actually felt better as the game went on. I wasn’t really concerned. Woke up the next morning, felt pretty good,” Carmona said. “It was a run play. Kind of got outside my frame a little bit. Just kind of tweaked it up.”
Carmona didn’t play tackle football until his junior year at Las Vegas High School but developed into a Power Four commodity at San Jose State, drawing offers from BYU, Auburn and UCLA.
He transferred to Arkansas in 2023 and was something of an unknown then, too.
“I kind of felt that way going from San Jose to Arkansas,” Carmona said. “It was like, 'Who the hell is this Group of Five guy coming in here thinking he's gonna start?' But I just showed it by my work. That's how people recognize my name."
Tyler Palmateer covers the Tennessee Titans for The Tennessean. Have a story idea for Tyler? Reach him at tpalmateer@tennessean.com and on the X platform,@tpalmateer83.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why Tennessee Titans OL Fernando Carmona Jr. didn't mind being late draft pick
