The Las Vegas Raiders are coming up on what will hopefully be a franchise-changing season, headed up by veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins and rookie Fernando Mendoza as their signal-calling unit. But who will be QB1 for the majority of the season? That’s the big question going forward.
While Cousins, 37, is largely being seen as a temporary quarterback to help get the Raiders over the hump of having a rookie who will eventually be their franchise quarterback in Mendoza, there’s still a question as to how long Cousins will start for the Raiders before they turn things over to Mendoza.
Now, Mendoza is getting kudos ahead of his rookie year in the league.
In a feature on the newest quarterbacks in the NFL going into the 2026-27 season, Jordan Reid of ESPN has kind words for Mendoza as the player heads into his first year in the league. That’s not surprising, but still.
“Dating to his time at Cal and progressing through last season at Indiana, Mendoza has experienced multiple offenses,” Reid notes in the piece of what Mendoza brings to Las Vegas. “When required to, Mendoza showed he is capable of operating a versatile scheme that demands exhausting multistep progressions where he can get to third and fourth options in passing concepts.”
Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza would both make solid QB1s for the Raiders
It’s great to see Mendoza get props amid the excitement of his first year. The Raiders have every reason to think they have a winner with their No. 1 overall selection.
Mendoza makes for an excellent quarterback in Klint Kubiak’s offense, and he has the numbers to back it up. He and the Indiana Hoosiers went undefeated during the 2025-26 season, and it’s unlikely that would have happened without Mendoza.
But Cousins is still important this season. He’s a veteran who brings years of experience to the team, and he can hit the ground running. Cousins has the edge to start as QB1, but this “battle” will likely be a friendly one, with Cousins helping Mendoza get used to the NFL world.
