Raiders GM sends clear message to Fernando Mendoza, Kirk Cousins about starting job

While speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek basically confirmed that he will be holding onto the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft that almost certainly will be used to select Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Almost immediately after the Raiders signed veteran Kirk Cousins in free agency, some assumed that Cousins would enter the upcoming season as the Raiders' starter over Mendoza. On Tuesday, Spytek hinted that Mendoza will be given a chance to win the QB1 job this coming summer. 

"Best guy" will start for Raiders between Fernando Mendoza, Kirk Cousins

"Ultimately, this is a meritocracy, and the best guy will play," Spytek explained, per Ryan McFadden of ESPN. "It's just really hard to play really well at a young age. But we've seen plenty of quarterbacks do it recently. We added Kirk, we have [Aidan O’Connell], and we'll see how it goes."

That's all well and good, but it's worth noting that Raiders minority owner Tom Brady has made it known over the years that he is in favor of quarterbacks spending at least portions of rookie seasons learning as backups. Brady allegedly has quite a bit of say regarding personnel decisions, and first-year Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak seems to agree with TB12 as it pertains to the handling of rookie signal-callers. 

Is Kirk Cousins on track to start for Raiders over Fernando Mendoza?

"It's a hard position to play, and there's a lot to learn beyond throwing [a] football and being a good teammate," Spytek added about the upcoming quarterback competition. "A lot of these guys live their entire life in shotgun [formation]. They don't huddle. You really got to teach some of these guys how to run a huddle, how to break a huddle, how to get under center and call a cadence. ...We all understand there's not a ton of patience in the job that we chose here, but if you can find some level of patience and put people in positions when they're ready, that's the best way forward."

Those comments indicate Cousins may have to lose the starting job for Mendoza to enter September as Las Vegas' first-choice option. That said, it sounds like the Raiders aren't fully committed to sitting Mendoza if he looks ready for prime time during preseason games.