After spending months going through the pre-draft process, new Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza is happy to put the focus back on football. However, there are still other offseason activities he has to participate in.
Recently, he had to go to the 2026 NFLPA Rookie Premiere, which was mandated by the NFL for him to attend. The event gives rookies the first chance to wear their team’s uniform and also learn a lot about the resources the NFLPA provides them. While Mendoza is always happy to learn, he actually wasn’t thrilled that he had to attend.
“I’m going to be completely honest with you, I’d rather be practicing right now, and I was really upset about actually having to miss practice for this,” Mendoza told Sports Illustrated. “Still, it’s been a great moment to where it was mandatory to be here. I’m not going to feel sorry for myself and feel wishy-washy. I’m going to have a smile on my face and make the most of that present moment. Live and learn all the NFLPA benefits, make all the connections with different mentors here, let me make sure I can maximize my time to be able to create a positive impact and learn about my situation and surroundings. Those are all the things I really benefited from being here.”
Mendoza Talks ‘Step Brothers’ Parody
It has become a tradition in recent years for teams to get creative with their schedule release videos. This year, the Raiders decided to have Kirk Cousins and Mendoza parody the 2008 film “Step Brothers.”
The team’s schedule release video ended up getting a lot of attention, but it sounds like it came together quickly.
“We actually didn’t really prepare,” Mendoza said of filming the video. “However, Kirk for sure outshined me and helped me because he’s a little bit of a marketing vet, especially with the Netflix documentary that he did. So, he was great. He took a little bit of a vet role as well in that production. It was a fun and funny thing we wanted to do for the fans. I was really glad that it came out well.”
While many fans enjoyed the video, head coach Klint Kubiak is more focused on the season.
“I’d love for him to focus on football more,” Kubiak said.
Mendoza Doing All the Right Things
Cousins is getting the first-team reps for the Raiders in practice right now, as Mendoza learns the NFL game, but it could be difficult to keep him off the field. Right now, Mendoza is doing and saying all the right things.
He’s already working hard and showing how humble he is. He’ll likely defer to Cousins a lot this offseason. However, he’s bigger, younger and more athletic than the veteran quarterback. Cousins will probably start the season, but Mendoza won’t make life easy for him. If Mendoza isn’t ready, the Raiders won’t play him, but with how hard he works, it’s hard to imagine he won’t be ready to play as a rookie.
Fernando Mendoza Reveals Reason for Being ‘Upset’ With NFL