The Las Vegas Raiders caught to the script on NFL Draft night time, choosing Indiana quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza with the primary total choose. Mendoza arrives within the desert with an enormous mandate: revitalize a rebuilding franchise and pull the Raiders out of the AFC West cellar following a dismal marketing campaign.
Raiders draft Fernando Mendoza No. 1 verall to steer franchise rebuild
In a transfer to maintain his school model intact, Mendoza has formally chosen to put on No. 15, the identical jersey he donned throughout his storied run at Indiana.
The choose follows an aggressive offseason for Las Vegas, highlighted by the free-agent signing of veteran Kirk Cousins. Whereas Mendoza is the clear way forward for the franchise, a quarterback competitors is not essentially within the playing cards for Week 1. All indicators level to Cousins beginning beneath middle because the QB1, permitting the rookie to acclimate to the NFL’s velocity.
Not like Cousins’ earlier stint in Atlanta-where the Michael Penix Jr. choice caught the league by surprise-this dynamic is clear. Cousins has been introduced in with an outlined mentorship function to usher within the Mendoza period. Mendoza brings a harmful dual-threat quarterback ability set to the professionals, however the Raiders are ready for the inevitable rising pains that include a rookie signal-caller in a creating system.
The primary true take a look at for the new-look Raiders will come into focus subsequent month when the NFL formally releases the 2026 schedule.



























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