The Raiders Officially Welcome QB Fernando Mendoza

LAS VEGAS, Nev.--The Las Vegas Raiders added quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the top pick in this year's NFL Draft, finally addressing their pressing need for a quality quarterback. Mendoza will sit behind Kirk Cousins to start the season, and will see the field when he is deemed ready.

The Raiders' front office and coaching staff have made it well known they do not want to rush Mendoza onto the field and have a development plan firmly in place for him. In the meantime, Las Vegas must continue building out their roster and assembling no shortage of new pieces.

Watch Mendoza Discuss More Below

Las Vegas will move forward with the remainder of their offseason plan to revamp their roster. However, Mendoza was a significant part of the Raiders' short term and long-term plan. Las Vegas is moving full speed ahead and Mendoza will soon be the leader of the ship.

After being introduced as the newest member of the Raiders' roster on Friday morning, Mendoza explained how excited he is to finally join the Raiders after months of speculation and expectations. The Raiders have nine additional picks, but Mendoza is the marquee pick of the Raiders' draft class.

With Mendoza on board, Las Vegas can finally eliminate quarterback as a roster need. The arrival of Mendoza allowed the Raiders' front office to focus on other positions leading up to the draft. Now that the most important position on the field is solidified, the Raiders can move forward.

The Raiders are inching closer to their overall goal of improving their roster, but for now, they have done as much as they possibly could have to improve.

Raiders' Next Focus

Mendoza, in addition to a set of strong signings early in free agency, has put the Raiders in a good position entering the second and third rounds of the draft. Day Two of the draft should be equally productive.

Las Vegas has high picks in both rounds and follows that up with seven picks on Day Three of the draft. This gives them yet another chance to add a wave of talent to a roster desperately in need of it. However, for now, Mendoza and the Raiders get to soak it all in.

“I didn't know to celebrate when I got the phone call or when I heard it on the TV, so that was a little bit of a mix up there. But when I first got the call, the emotions, it was before the draft I was about to just burst out with emotion. And I told myself, hey, hold it in,” Mendoza said shortly after being drafted.

“Hold it in. It hasn't even happened yet, and then once it happened, I was ecstatic, and heard my mom say, ‘I’m so proud of you,’ and so that kind of broke me there. And I'm just so happy to have such a great support system, and so grateful and blessed for the opportunity.”

Adding Mendoza was the next step for the Raiders, who are finally headed in the right direction. As Las Vegas looks to turn the page from years of disappointing roster additions and results, they hope Mendoza develops into the quarterback they believe he can be under their coaching staff.

The Raiders still have more work to do to rebuild their roster and get all of their new pieces working well together on the field, not just on paper. It is hard not to like where they sit right now compared to where they were at the end of the 2025 season. Mendoza is a large part of the reason why.

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