With the Las Vegas Raiders in the middle of OTAs, the question surrounding the team is whether the No. 1 pick, Fernando Mendoza, can wow head coach Klint Kubiak and his staff enough to name him the starting QB over veteran Kirk Cousins.
It appears the Silver and Black would prefer to go with the veteran and have Mendoza learn, so that once he takes the field, he’s ready. Nonetheless, if Las Vegas does go with Cousins, then the countdown will be when the Raiders decide to insert the rookie.
On the May 29 edition of “Derek & Decker,” 97.1 The Fan’s Cody Decker predicted when Mendoza could be under center for the Raiders this upcoming 2026 NFL season.
“I don’t want to see him against the Chiefs on Oct. 4,” Decker said. “I don’t want to see him against the Patriots on Oct. 11, or the Bills, or the Rams on Oct. 25. However, Nov. 1 is circled. I’m just saying the Nov. 1 game is one I have penciled in and circled as maybe where we go ahead and throw Fernando out there because I’m more than happy to see him against the Jets…
“Just because I penciled in the Jets, it doesn’t get easier after that. You got the Niners, you got the Seahawks, who are defending champions, the Broncos. We still don’t really know what the Browns are going to be this season. I’m assuming they’re just always going to be the Browns. Then you have the Chargers and Broncos.
Could Las Vegas Improve on Their Win Total From Last Season?
Despite the Raiders having stretches in which they’ll be the underdog, Decker believes Las Vegas will take a step forward in this rebuild and improve on last season’s win total.
“There are not a lot of places for the Raiders to breathe this year except for the Titans, the Cardinals and the Jets,” Decker added. “And even then, it’s not 100 percent that they’re going to win those games. I have no idea what this Raiders team is going to look like.
“They made great moves this offseason. They brought in the head coach they supposedly really wanted. We’ll see. Can they get six wins? I would call it a victory and a half if they got six wins this season.”
Raiders OC on How Fernando Mendoza Is Looking
Amid the talk about when Mendoza will be under center for the Raiders, the team’s offensive coordinator, Andrew Janocko, shared his initial thoughts on Mendoza in a May 18 video on the Raiders’ YouTube channel.
“[Mendoza is] a tremendous worker [and] he’s somebody who wants to know the whys behind everything, the story behind everything, not just what we’re calling, but why we’re calling it,” Janocko said.
“He wants to know the building blocks of the footwork, the building blocks of his vision, how he’s going to see it, and how he’s going to articulate it to the offense. He’s really just a sponge who wants to know everything.”
Last season with the Indiana Hoosiers, Mendoza had 336 dropbacks, resulting in an 87.9 overall PFF grade while recording 2,758 passing yards, 32 touchdowns, and five interceptions. Moreover, he registered 16 big-time throws and nine turnover-worthy plays.
Meanwhile, on the ground, Mendoza added 200 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns.
Raiders Get Major Fernando Mendoza Starting QB Prediction