Raiders Name Kirk Cousins Starting QB

“Kirk’s had a very good offseason, a really good camp and he’s earned it,” Kubiak said.

Despite Mendoza’s draft status, Cousins getting the nod had been the expected outcome since the 38-year-old signed with the Raiders in early April. Mendoza wasn’t a Raider yet, but Kubiak said in early April that rookie signal-callers in general benefit from “watching a mature adult go and run an offense and run the team.”

Then, after the Raiders wrapped up their three-game exhibition schedule last week, Kubiak suggested Mendoza is not ready to start yet. Kubiak noted Mendoza and the rest of the team’s first-year players could use “another three preseason games.”

Now in his 15th season, Cousins joined the Raiders a month after the Falcons released him halfway into a four-year, $180MM contract. While Cousins did not fare nearly as well in Atlanta as he did in previous stops in Washington and Minnesota, rebuilding Las Vegas sees him as a capable bridge starter. It helps that Cousins rolled into town having already established a rapport with Kubiak.

Kubiak was the Vikings’ quarterbacks coach in 2019 and their offensive coordinator from 2020-21, a three-year stretch in which Cousins earned two of his four career Pro Bowl nods. He is also plenty familiar with Raiders OC Andrew Janocko, who took over for Kubiak as the Vikings’ QBs coach in 2021.

Cousins expressed excitement about reuniting with Kubiak and Janocko during the spring. The three are all teaming up again a half-decade later, though it is unknown how long Cousins will last as the starter on a club that will have trouble avoiding a third straight last-place finish in the AFC West.

Mendoza, who won the Heisman Trophy and national championship at Indiana last year, went 25 of 45 for 240 yards, a touchdown and an interception during the preseason. He will continue his development as a backup, making him the first No. 1 overall QB since Baker Mayfield (Browns, 2018) not to start his team’s regular-season opener. Nevertheless, with Kubiak and Mendoza both rookies in their respective roles, the long-suffering Raiders are pinning their long-term hopes on them turning into an elite duo.