Fernando Mendoza, the Raiders' starting quarterback following Kirk Cousins' trade
The Hispanic quarterback, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, has bided his time, and the franchise's executives believe that the "Mendoza era" is now beginning.
Aerial view of Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders
The No. 1 pick in the NFL in 2026, the Hispanic Fernando Mendoza, "has passed every test" and will be the Raiders' starting quarterback, according to an announcement by the Las Vegas franchise's general manager, John Spytek.
The confidence that kicks off "the Mendoza era" is so strong that they have traded away their previous starting quarterback, Kirk Cousins, to the Minnesota Vikings.
The promising player of Cuban descent found solace in his strong Christian beliefs in the face of a frustrating start to the season, during which he had to wait until Week 5 before even making his debut with his new NFL team.
That was, to date, his only appearance on the field. That day, his team lost to the New England Patriots, and he completed 6 of 8 passes for 48 yards.
"His growth as a person, as a teammate, as a leader, as a quarterback"
However, it is his quiet, relentless work—never giving up—that has earned him this opportunity to start from the beginning for the first time next Sunday at home against the reigning NFL Super Bowl champions, the Seattle Superhawks, according to Spytek:
"It's something that he's worked very hard for since the moment he walked into this building. I want to stop short of saying he's earned it, but he put us in a position where we had to make a really hard decision today, with his growth as a person, as a teammate, as a leader, as a quarterback."
"[Mendoza] performed at a level in practice that was impossible to ignore, and he put us in a position to make a really hard decision today," added the Raiders' general manager.
The Raiders insist they haven't written off the season
Spytek also wanted to make it clear that the trade of Cousins—who was having a good season—does not mean the Raiders have written off the season (their record is 4-5 at the moment), far from it.
"That's not the intention of this," the general manager said. "We have a big game this week against the defending world champs, and we intend to attack it like we would any week. That's expected of us."
The team's head coach, Klint Kubiak, echoed the praise, stating that the promising Hispanic quarterback "exceeded all his expectations" during training camp, which encouraged the franchise to move forward with him.
"He works really hard. His teammates know how prepared he is. It's not just lip service, but he has shown it on the practice field."
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