The Las Vegas Raiders are close to wrapping up OTAs before moving on to mandatory minicamp and then breaking for the summer ahead of training camp. So it’s still early in the process, but of course, the most popular player on the roster right now is the new quarterback and No. 1 overall pick of the 2026 NFL draft, Fernando Mendoza.
Even though we’re three months from the Raiders’ regular season starting, it’s natural to wonder how Mendoza has looked during OTAs. To help answer those questions, offensive
coordinator Andrew Janocko spoke to local reporters recently on May 28 and shed some light on how the future of the franchise is coming along so far.
One way Mendoza has impressed the coaching staff is through his mental approach, showing that he wants to have a full grasp of the playbook and know the ins and outs of every play in it.
“Yeah, I think that’s something we ask from all quarterbacks is just to know the ‘whys’ behind every play,” Janocko replied when asked about the rookie’s mental approach. “Know the ‘what,’ know the ‘whys,’ and be ready to go above and beyond the X’s and O’s at times to make things right and to know where guys are at and where they’re supposed to be at, so that you can help guys. Knowing not [just] your job, but the other 10 jobs as well.”
On a related note, the rookie’s work ethic has stood out to Janocko, while Kirk Cousins and Aidan O’Connell are proving to be great examples and resources.
“I think he’s a guy that wants to come in and grind every day, work. All three of those guys come in every single day, and they want to work, they want to learn, they want to be the best in the world,” the coach explained. “He’s got two guys in the room with him that just set an unbelievable example with the way they work, the way they prepare, so he’s able to see that and grow within himself.”
And the results have been showing up in practice.
“If there’s something that he needs to improve on, he takes that step,” Janocko said. “Whether it be getting away from center, or it’d be something where he gets through a progression either too fast or maybe he’s a little too slow on stuff. Just creating efficiency for himself in the classroom, creating efficiency with his mental process, or creating efficiency as he processes on the field, being able to take what we’ve done in the classroom to the individual drill, then taking the individual drill into the team drill. As you see that apply, that’s where a quarterback grows.”
While it wasn’t asked directly, the offensive coordinator did get hit with a version of the million-dollar question: “When is Mendoza going to be ready to start?” Of course, his answer was a lot of coach speak, but Janocko did touch on the type of culture the Raiders’ new coaching staff is trying to construct.
“Yeah, I think for us, we’re trying to create an environment of competition,” he said, “trying to create an environment of growth for all three of those guys, [so that] no matter where you are in your career, that you feel like you come into that meeting room each and every single day, and you have a place to grow and learn and become a better player, a better competitor, a better teammate.”
