Fernando Mendoza isn’t the starting quarterback in Las Vegas, but do the Raiders have a plan to get him into games by the end of the season?
If they do, it sounds like it isn’t something the Head Coach and GM are thinking about right now.
During the FOX broadcast of Sunday’s game, play-by-play analyst Chris Myers said he talked with John Spytek and Klint Kubiak, and both said there isn’t a concrete plan to get Mendoza into games this year.
“We asked both the Head Coach and General Manager of the Raiders, ‘Do you have a plan to work in Mendoza?’ and they both said ‘Not necessarily. As long as Cousins is rolling with the team and we’re winning, we’ll stay with that,'” Myers said during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game.
For his part, the broadcast team said Mendoza told them he is willing to be on the sideline all season if that’s what the coaching staff wants to do.
Kirk Cousins took every snap in Sunday’s 27-14 win over the Dolphins, but it was evident in the game that Cousins is not going to be able to throw the ball downfield the way Mendoza did in the preseason.
Cousins played well, but it will be interesting to see how he performs against some of the better defenses on the schedule. And if opposing defenses begin to crowd the line of scrimmage, will Cousins have the arm strength (and playmakers at wide receiver) to attack defenses downfield?
Based on what cameras captured on Sunday, Mendoza followed every play on his play sheet on Sunday and rarely took his helmet off on the sideline.
The Raiders’ offensive line, which was one of the worst in the league in 2025, didn’t give up a sack in week 1 and Ashton Jeanty eclipsed 100 rushing yards for just the third time in his NFL career.
When Mendoza finally does get on the field, it looks like he will be playing behind an offensive line that has improved significantly from a year ago.
x: @raidersbeat