The Las Vegas Raiders picked Fernando Mendoza as the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL draft, a move that made fans excited about the franchise’s future.
Despite a great 2025 college football season that led them to a national championship, the Raiders brought in veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins to ramp up the competition.
As the Raiders are reported to start their training camp on Thursday, July 23, NFL insider Ian Rapoport questioned whether there really is a quarterback competition between Mendoza and Cousins.
“It truly seems like the way they are planning, the way they’re hoping for it to all be, is for Kirk Cousins to be the starter at the beginning of the season, throughout the season, and at the end of the season, because that means he is playing well, it means he has stayed healthy, and it means Fernando Mendoza can just sit there and learn,” Rapoport said.
“If that is the way it goes for the Raiders, that is absolutely fine. However, another scenario could come to pass very quickly. But it’s not a guarantee. And the reason I say that is because we have seen this in the past.
“You say, ‘All right, we’re going to sit this rookie, probably not going to play, he’s going to learn.’ What if Mendoza hits the ground running so fast and so well that they say, ‘This guy has to play?’ It might not be game one, but it could be early in the season.”
Analyst Expresses Concern About Klint Kubiak’s Plan About Fernando Mendoza and Kirk Cousins
Pro Football Network’s Mike Florio spoke about Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak’s apparent quarterback plan for the 2026 season.
Florio said he believes Mendoza is clearly better than Cousins as a quarterback, as the veteran star is deep into his last 30s, which could become a problem for players like Maxx Crosby and Brock Bowers.
“Wait a minute. The NFL has evolved to the ultimate one-year-at-a-time sport. We’ve a guy who we can all tell at every practice is better than Kirk Cousins as of right now, but you’ve got this plan that you’re going to groom Fernando Mendoza by having him not play, by deliberately choosing the lesser guy to be the quarterback. Good luck with that one, Klint Kubiak. I just don’t buy it.”
Cousins has signed with the Raiders with a one-year, $20M contract.
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