Las Vegas Raiders QB Fernando Mendoza has had a couple of weeks with the Silver and Black as he’s gone through rookie minicamp, OTAs, and mandatory minicamp.
As the former Indiana Hoosiers star is adjusting to life in the NFL, the question is whether the rookie can do anything to take the starting job from veteran QB Kirk Cousins.
Many expect Cousins to come away with the starting job, allowing Mendoza to watch from the sidelines. However, former NFL punter Pat McAfee believes that shouldn’t be the case, and the Raiders would be better served by going with Mendoza right out of the gate.
“[Mendoza is] already talking the right way,” McAfee said on the June 23 edition of “The Pat McAfee Show.” “He’s come on our show and talked about how defenses are puzzles and he’s trying to figure out the puzzle, and, in real time, he’s trying to do it. He can move, he can run, [and] he can throw.
“And now he’s got Tom Brady teaching him how to be the perfect leader out there. I feel like Mendoza is going to do some good things with the Raiders… I was on the side that Kirk Cousins needs to start and let Nando kind of watch. Now I’m at the point of let the boy play.”
Raiders’ Fernando Mendoza Fixed Major Issue
One of the reasons McAfee wants to see Mendoza is that a major concern he had about the rookie quarterback was how the football was coming out. However, the former NFL player noted that the Raiders’ young signal-caller has addressed the issue.
“The ball isn’t much of a difference for Fernando because I did wonder about the ball,” McAfee added. “The way he throws that thing, the college ball was a perfect spiral every single time. We watched his pro day, and there were a couple ducks, which was very abnormal. I was not used to seeing that. If you’re normally a dart thrower and you start throwing ducks, I think sometimes your accuracy can be off.
“So I was worried about potentially an NFL ball with Fernando’s hand. He’s figured it out… Every single ball that we saw him throw in college, during the workouts, on the sideline, on the field in between plays, and then on the field during plays, every ball is a dart. He’s big. He’s strong. I think you play him. I honestly think you play him.”
It Wouldn’t Be a Bad Thing to Learn From Kirk Cousins
While McAfee noted that he would like to see Mendoza start from Week 1, if there’s any QB he would pick for the rookie to learn from, it’s Cousins.
“Kirk Cousins would be the right guy [to learn from] just so Fernando can see how he operates as the starting quarterback of the team [and] what does the team meeting look like?” McAfee said.
“What does the night before a game look like? What does the ball selection process on Fridays look like? I think in training, all of that stuff, getting to watch a guy do that throughout the regular season and for a couple of games, is a huge piece of information for Fernando.”
Raiders Get Strong Fernando Mendoza Take Before Training Camp