The Raiders begin training camp in less a week and the presumption is that Kirk Cousins will be at the top of the quarterback depth chart. But does a scenario exist where Fernando Mendoza could win the job?
This week, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said there may be a window of opportunity for Mendoza to earn the job, and Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer believes there will be some first team reps reserved for Mendoza over the next six weeks.
“Two things have been clear. The first is that Mendoza’s reputation as a worker and as being coachable checked out—his presence has been constant at the facility, and he has shown the ability to absorb what he’s being taught and translate it to the practice field quickly,” Breer reported on Monday.
“Second, Kirk Cousins and Mendoza already have a really strong relationship, which should help the rookie as he navigates his first season as a pro. So given all that, could Mendoza win the job? I think it’s probably unlikely. Kubiak, I believe, will be very deliberate in how the Raiders bring Mendoza along, as much as anything to ensure that the progress he’s making takes and becomes permanent. But it does sound like the Raiders will sprinkle Mendoza in with the first team this summer—with Cousins’s extensive background in the scheme giving them more flexibility to do so—as part of the rookie’s larger development plan.”
Ultimately, there can’t be a quarterback determination made until the coaching staff sees how Cousins and Mendoza respond on the field – and both have circumstances working against them.
Cousins isn’t in the prime of his career and Mendoza still has a lot to learn.
The question is… when will it become clear to people in the building that Mendoza gives the Raiders the best chance to win?
NBC Sports host Mike Florio talked about that dynamic last week, and he believes the coaching staff can’t afford to put the lesser player on the field.
“When you’re out on the practice field, if Mendoza is clearly better than Kirk Cousins, and you’ve got some grand strategic plan that you’re going to let him sit for a year? What’s Maxx Crosby going to say about that? What’s Brock Bowers going to say about that? What’s any veteran player going to say,” Florio said on PFT Live.
“We have 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.”
To be fair, Kubiak never said he open to playing the lesser quarterback, and if the Raiders get to a point where Mendoza looks like the better option, it sounds from the outside like the coaching staff would be willing to pivot.
x: @raidersbeat
You surely can’t rush Mendoza onto the field. There is a learning curve for the most important position in football. The kid really seems from what we are hearing doing all the right things to make our Raiders relevant again in the NFL. Even Patrick Mahomes with his talent wasn’t just thrown out there to play. Let’s keep Mendoza on that learning curve until the Raiders really feel he is ready to start in the NFL. He is our Raider future. Go Raiders!!!!!