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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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Fernando Mendoza is coming off one of the best college football seasons in history. In his lone year at Indiana, he led the Hoosiers to their first-ever 16-0 season, a national championship, and won the program's first Heisman Trophy. He finished the year with 3,535 passing yards, 41 touchdowns, and just six interceptions, completing 72% of his passes. It's easy to see why the Las Vegas Raiders were so confident in taking him No. 1 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
But Monday's practice didn't go quite as smoothly. Mendoza delivered several off-target throws during 11-on-11s, including one that put rookie wide receiver Malik Benson in a dangerous spot, nearly leading to a big hit from a defender. He also reportedly had some snap and ball-control issues throughout the session.
Even so, head coach Klint Kubiak isn't concerned. "There will never be a perfect game or practice," Kubiak said. "I think he is doing a good job. I don't expect him to be perfect right now."
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Addressing the areas Mendoza still needs to clean up, Kubiak added: "That's a part of playing the position ... That's why the quarterback has to be one of the best athletes on the field. He has to be able to grab a low snap and be able to jump on it when it's over his head."
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The Raiders clearly believe Mendoza can be a franchise quarterback, but they also recognize the natural growing pains that come with any rookie. That's part of why the organization brought in veteran Kirk Cousins this offseason — a move that allowed Kubiak to name Cousins the team's starter heading into training camp.
Cousins is coming off a rough couple of seasons in Atlanta, but he's still a four-time Pro Bowler who was once one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league. He also has familiarity with Kubiak's system from their time together in Minnesota and, perhaps most importantly, brings 14 years of NFL experience.
That kind of veteran presence gives a young player like Mendoza someone to learn from as he works to clean up these early mistakes and grow into the quarterback the franchise envisioned when it drafted him.
Having Tom Brady as a minority owner probably doesn't hurt either.
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