The Las Vegas Raiders drafted their potential franchise quarterback in Fernando Mendoza with the first overall selection during the 2026 NFL draft. Mendoza, the 2025 Heisman, National Champion, Big Ten Offensive Player & Newcomer of the Year, and Consensus All-American logged 41 passing touchdowns, 6 interceptions, a 72% completion rate, and 3535 yards through 16 games. The Raiders are not putting all of their eggs in the Mendoza basket to start the season, as they also signed veteran Kirk Cousins
to a 1 year contract and the impression is that Cousins will start the season under center for the Raiders.
Cousins, who turns 38 next month, spent the last two seasons with the Falcons in a backup QB role, but also started 24 games due to injuries to Michael Penix, and the starting role Atlanta handed him. Cousins had a 65% completion rate, 5229 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions across his time in Atlanta but he also saw a lower rate of turnover worthy plays than interceptions, signaling some interceptions may not be his fault. Cousins should start for the Raiders, but there’s a good shot that Mendoza will also see a fair share of snaps this season as the Raiders starter in his rookie season.
Week 7 vs Rams
- Ideally I imagine the Raiders want to have Mendoza’s first start come at home, which a week 7 slot would align with. The Rams are not an ideal team to have your first start against, the defense ranked top 10 last year, and added future hall of famer Myles Garrett, along with top defensive backs Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson. Chris Shula and Sean McVay have made careers of aggressive, fast paced, complex defensive systems and Shula has had his number vs young quarterbacks as well. Week 7 is likely a bit early, and being thrown into the fire against the Rams is not an easy task, but Las Vegas takes a road trip for two weeks after the Rams and if they want an early look at Mendoza, week 7 lines up best.
Week 8 at Jets
- Similar to that of the Rams in week 7, if the Raiders want an early look at Mendoza a week 8 matchup with the Jets signals to be a strong time period. As mentioned above, they may want to have Mendoza’s first start at home, and a road trip out East to New York isn’t the ideal case. Aaron Glenn has succeeded vs young quarterbacks, but Aaron Glenn has also seen his defense struggle in his brief stint as a head coach. That defense did turn around and add standouts David Onyemata, David Bailey, Joseph Ossai and T’Vondre Sweat to the defensive line with DeMario Davis at linebacker, and Dane Belton, Nahshon Wright, D’Angelo Ponds, and Minkah Fitzpatrick in the secondary. Starting Mendoza out vs New York likely gives an easier initial start than the Rams, but it’s still a road trip.
Week 10: vs Seattle
- Following week 9 comes the NFL trade deadline, and if the Raiders hear some chatter about possibly getting value for Kirk Cousins, then he could be shipped out and Mendoza slots in week 10 vs Seattle. In an ideal world, I don’t think anyone wants Mendoza’s first start against the reigning super bowl champions, who did lose three starters but still retain plenty of other standouts, and defensive mastermind Mike MacDonald. MacDonald beat up on young quarterbacks last year, and the Seattle system is extremely complex, versatile, and matchup dependent. Additionally, MacDonald also has a clear connection to Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak, and he’ll know how to attack the Raiders offensive system and Mendoza. This likely only comes in a rare shot where Cousins is moved, but I doubt this is the first start for him.
Week 12: at Cleveland
- This could be the first start for Mendoza, and I think in the Raiders ideal world this is his first shot. A trip across the country to Cleveland is not ideal, and playing in Cleveland during late November could make for a ton of rough conditions. That said, Mendoza did play at Indiana and excelled in some cold weather games, including a 38-3 win vs Alabama in the playoffs. The Browns moved Myles Garrett, but did add Jared Verse though the defense remains rather the same and likely a middle of the road defense. The Raiders bye week comes in week 13, and Mendoza would have the chance to go into Cleveland, play, and then learn over the bye week before finishing out the season against ideal opponents.
Week 14: vs Chargers
- Similar to week 12 vs the Browns, this start comes after the bye week for the Raiders and would allow the best of both worlds for Las Vegas. To start, Mendoza gets the chance to play at home for his first ever start, and after that it’s coming off the bye week giving him ample time to prepare for the Chargers defense that should induce some challenges. Following week 14, the Raiders turn around to the Broncos, Titans, Cardinals, and Chiefs. I’d imagine Las Vegas wants to see Mendoza earlier than later to know what needs to be built for 2026, but regardless a 5-9 game sample size should be enough and later towards the end of the season, Las Vegas can see 5 games vs five different levels of opponents.
