Not everyone is a big believe in projected No. 1 overall pick, Fernando Mendoza.
Mendoza led the Indiana Hoosiers to a perfect 16-0 record en route to winning this year’s national championship and was named the Heisman after throwing for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns, and six interceptions.
With the Las Vegas Raiders holding the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, they are expected to select Mendoza barring a huge surprise. He’s viewed as the most complete/NFL ready quarterback prospect by many, but not by everyone.
Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky, who is an NFL analyst for ESPN, delivered his thoughts on why he believes Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is a better fit for the Raiders and new head coach Klint Kubiak.
“If we’re being honest, Ty Simpson, is a better fit or marriage for what the Las Vegas Raiders would do under Klint Kubiak than Fernando Mendoza. Most of the things that he does at least half of the things that he does from a scheme standpoint are under center. Mendoza took five snaps under center in his entire college career. This is going to be a drastically different experience for Mendoza.”
“Ty Simpson, schematically, is a better fit or marriage for what the Las Vegas Raiders would do under Klint Kubiak than Fernando Mendoza.”
There’s A Good Chance Fernando Mendoza Sits As A Rookie
While the Las Vegas Raiders are expected to draft Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick, there’s a chance he doesn’t see the field as a rookie.
The Raiders brought in veteran free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins to battle Mendoza for the starting job this summer. With Mendoza going to a new offensive system and with Cousins being a veteran, the expectation as of now is that Cousins will enter the season as the starting quarterback for LV.
The NFL 2026 season is five months away and a lot can happen from now until the start of the season. One of the two QBs could get hurt, one could be much further ahead of the other as far as productivity and knowing the offense, and the Raiders could just simply choose to take their time and be patient with Mendoza’s process.
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