Raiders Have Rounded Out 1 Position Group Well

The Raider Way...for Mendoza

Las Vegas has had a bad collection of quarterbacks since the departure of Derek Carr. Veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins will mark the eighth quarterback the Raiders have started since the 2023 season. Soon-to-be No. 1 overall pick in the draft, Fernando Mendoza, will be the ninth.

The Raiders' front office hopes Mendoza is the last starting quarterback they will need for some time. In an effort to do so, Las Vegas will use Cousins to help them start off the season with a sense of stability at quarterback. In the meantime, Mendoza will continue working in the background.

This setup should allow Klint Kubiak and his coaching staff to rally around Mendoza without much pressure for him to start right away. Cousins knows every player has room to develop, and that the Raiders' quarterback room and coaching staff will have to learn from each other.

"We just spent so much time together in the room. I'm going to get to know Aidan [O'Connell] so well here over the next few weeks. I've always leaned so heavily on the other guys in the room, the other quarterbacks almost become like another coach. I'll come off to the sideline when Klint [Kubiak] was my quarterback coach, and he'll say something to me, Sean Mannion was the other quarterback with us,” Cousins said at his introductory press conference.

“Klint would talk, then I'd look at Sean and say, 'Great, what do you think, Sean?' I wanted to get his opinion too. So, we're always kind of a working force in that room together, trying to help each other all pull in the same direction.

"And time in meetings, time at walk thrus, time preparing for games, warmups, locker room, pregame. There's just so much that you're kind of always together and supporting one another and my best years have always been when the quarterback room is really strong."

Every bit of connectedness the Raiders can muster will help move things along this upcoming season. Many of their moves have been to help set Mendoza up for success down the road. Mendoza may not start right away, but even that was a part of the plan to develop him at the right pace.

Cousins' arrival is much the same for Mendoza, as it will give him a veteran presence that will give him a buffer as he enters his rookie season. Few players around the league have as much insight into leading an organization as a quarterback in multiple facets, as Cousins.

Cousins worked his way up from a mid-round pick to a franchise quarterback. He has served as a backup quarterback to a quarterback drafted much higher than him. He has served as a backup quarterback after losing a starting position. He has plenty of insight Mendoza can benefit from.