The Las Vegas Raiders picked up their first preseason win Thursday, beating the Houston Texans 22-20 at NRG Stadium.
With most of the starters sitting out, including quarterback Kirk Cousins, head coach Klint Kubiak gave rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza the start and let him play the entire first half.
As a result, Mendoza played the entire first half. The Raiders’ young signal-caller went 8-for-15 on his pass attempts for 86 passing yards, including one interception and one sack.
After the game, ESPN NFL analyst Troy Aikman shared his thoughts on what he saw from Mendoza, even with the mistake that led to the pick-six for the Texans.
“It’s hard to know from here whether he thought the back was going to stay stationary or if he just didn’t anticipate the linebacker being as fast as he is,” Aikman said on the play that led to the pick-six. “Those are the things that he’ll get accustomed to as he gets more and more experienced.
“But I am really impressed with him. As I said in the game, a lot of quarterbacks come into this league and have all this ability, but you just don’t know what kind of leader they are, how important the game is to them, whether they’re going to put in the time or do the little things.
“With him, you check every box and say if he doesn’t have success with his talent and his mindset of wanting to be great, then, which is oftentimes the case, I’d say the organization failed him and didn’t get enough good players around him.”
Raiders Can Put Fernando Mendoza in Place to Succeed
Moreover, Aikman believes that the Raiders have the building blocks that can allow for Mendoza to be successful. There are still holes to address, but even the analyst said the Silver and Black can’t fix all their issues in one offseason.
“I think that with Klint Kubiak, he’s going to have good coaching on the offensive side of the ball,” Aikman added. “I do like some of these young players that they have. Ashton Jeanty and Brock Bowers. I mean, that’s a pretty good place to start to have those two cornerstone pieces offensively.
“Now it’s about protecting them. They’ve got to get better at wide receiver. Those things will happen as well. But you don’t solve everything in one offseason. But I do like the feel of this, and if Fernando Mendoza is who we think he is, this is a Raiders organization that looks to have a bright future.”
Fernando Mendoza on Preparing for His Preseason Start
Meanwhile, having played the entire first half, Mendoza already knew the team’s plan for this game. Because of that, the preparation for this game didn’t affect him, despite throwing an early pick in the contest.
“I wouldn’t say that it changed my preparation at all because I got the same amount of playing time,” Mendoza told reporters after the loss. “That was the plan going into these games that Coach Kubiak outlined for the team with the starters for the preseason.
“I knew going into the game that it was going to be a great experience as a first start in the NFL preseason, which is always the next step. However, I always try to prepare like the starter each and every week.”
Troy Aikman Gets Candid on Fernando Mendoza After Raiders Win