How Fernando Mendoza is already like Raiders minority owner Tom Brady

Barring what would be one of the most shocking football-related events of the 2020s, a Las Vegas Raiders team that has living legend Tom Brady as a minority owner will make Indiana Hoosiers star quarterback Fernando Mendoza the first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft on the night of April 23. 

Recently, one of Brady's former teammates insisted that the seven-time Super Bowl champion "would 100 percent bend over backwards" to serve as a mentor for Mendoza. According to a lengthy piece produced by Greg Bishop of Sports Illustrated, Mendoza has had Brady as an unofficial mentor for some time. 

Fernando Mendoza is already a Tom Brady disciple

"Mendoza became a TB12 disciple," Bishop wrote. "He sleeps eight hours a night, minimum. He read the book that explains Brady’s methodologies. He can recite which foods (strawberries, seedless tomatoes) Brady avoids because he considers them inflammatory."

Brady famously took great care of himself en route to playing at an MVP-level into his 40s. He also developed a reputation for being one of the most competitive and most prepared quarterbacks in NFL history.

Meanwhile, previous stories detailed how people within the Raiders learned that Mendoza possesses "a maniacal work ethic" and is a "driven kid" who "consistently got better" during his college career. 

Fernando Mendoza looked up to Tom Brady before either had ties to the Raiders

"Inadvertently, Brady even helped," Bishop explained. "An image Mendoza used to have on his Instagram page showcases the one player he most idolized. There’s young Fernando, wearing Brady’s Michigan jersey and a Wolverines helmet, even displaying an oddly similar tall and lean build. Mendoza saw some of himself in Brady. 'The perfect guy to look up to,' Mendoza says now. 'Cerebral. He wasn’t the fastest, wasn’t the strongest; just super, super smart and a great leader, too.'"

If Brady has his way, Mendoza will almost certainly spend part of his rookie season sitting and learning as a backup for veteran Kirk Cousins. Over two decades ago, Brady spent nearly all of his debut pro campaign serving as a backup behind Drew Bledsoe. Things worked out quite well for Brady, and he will now hope that Mendoza goes down a similar path as a member of the Raiders.