The Las Vegas Raiders are set to begin the regular season with Kirk Cousins as the starting quarterback. This was a disappointment to many who wanted to see No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza start.
While No. 1 pick quarterbacks have started in Week 1 over the past several years, it wasn’t a surprise when the Raiders made the decision to sit Mendoza. Cousins has played for new head coach Klint Kubiak before, so he’s more comfortable calling plays for him right now.
Plus, the Raiders may want to see what they have in their offensive line and wide receiver room before throwing Mendoza to the fire. By all accounts, the rookie looked good in training camp.
He had some stumbles in the preseason, but he also had to play with mostly backups. Had he had a chance to play with the starter more, perhaps he would’ve had a better chance of starting.
The Raiders may not have had any intention of giving Mendoza a real chance at winning the starting quarterback job. Fox Sports’ Henry McKenna ranked how each quarterback will “fare” in 2026, and he had Cousins at 29 because he doesn’t believe the Raiders had a real quarterback competition.
“He ‘won.’ He’s ‘QB1’ for the Raiders. QB1*? Either way, it doesn’t really count if Fernando Mendoza never got a fair shake in the quarterback competition,” McKenna wrote.
How Long is Cousins’ Leash?
Cousins has won the starting job for now, but he’s going to have to work hard to hold onto it. There’s a lot of excitement about Mendoza. The second Cousins throws his first interception, there’s going to be fan pressure to put the rookie in.
Now, the Raiders’ coaching staff could be tested early. They’re not going to give in to fans for the sake of it, but they can’t keep trotting Cousins out there if he plays poorly.
The veteran quarterback will likely at least have three games before the Raiders really consider making a change. In a perfect world, the team may not even want Mendoza to play at all this season. That’ll be hard to pull off, unless the offense turns out to be really solid with Cousins under center.
Mendoza Officially QB2 on Depth Chart
Ahead of the Raiders’ Week 1 game against the Miami Dolphins, they released their first official depth chart. There weren’t any big surprises, but Mendoza was notably the No. 2 quarterback.
That means that he’s officially the backup over Aidan O’Connell. That’s how things were most of the offseason, but there was speculation that O’Connell could be the backup so that the Raiders wouldn’t be forced to play Mendoza if something happens to Cousins.
Based on the depth chart, it doesn’t look like the team is opposed to playing Mendoza. They may just think that playing Cousins is the better move right now. It will be interesting to see if O’Connell sticks on the roster the whole season. He could still have value on the trade market due to his starting experience. A lot would have to happen for him to get on the field for the Raiders this season.
Fernando Mendoza ‘Never Got a Fair Shake’ in Raiders QB Battle