Why Fernando Mendoza Is Ready for the Pressure of Raiders

Getting picked in the first round of the NFL Draft comes with expectations. Those players who are first-round picks are expected to make an immediate impact on the team they go to.

That has been something a lot of people around the NFL always talk about when it is time to go into the NFL Draft season. But the one position that comes with more expectations is the quarterback position. When the quarterbacks get taken in the first round, they want them to be ready to go.

In today's NFL, the rookie quarterbacks who get drafted in the first round are expected to come in and be ready to start and show flashes of why they were a top pick coming out of college.

That is unfair for these players because at times, some teams are setting them up for failure, and you are just throwing that player into the fire in their first season in the NFL. That adjustment from college and the NFL is huge, and that is something that they need time to do.

evf — Jan 19, 2026; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Tom Brady looks on from the sideline before the CFP National Championship college football game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Miami Hurricanes at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Pressure for Raiders No. 1 overall pick

For the Las Vegas Raiders they will have that decision to make because they are potentially going to take a quarterback with the first overall pick. That is a lot of pressure for that quarterback, and the expectations are going to be through the roof for him.

That player is likely going to be the Indiana quarterback, Fernando Mendoza. Mendoza is the quarterback who will be looking to be the Raiders' franchise player for many years to come.

Mendoza will prepare himself for everything that the NFL is going to give him in his first season. Mendoza is a great player, but it is his character and the way he prepares for every challenge that separates him from the rest. That is a player who will be ready for the NFL, and he will have to make the adjustments, but he is coachable and does a lot of things the right way.

Jan 24, 2026; Bloomington, IN, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza (15) holds the Heisman Trophy with Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, during the Indiana Football College Football Playoff National Championship celebration and parade at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Grace Hollars-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | Grace Hollars-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

"The pressure that will be on his shoulders, do we play that up too much, or is that a very real thing?" said former Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon.

"I think pressure is real. You know, it affects everybody differently. I think when you are the first overall pick in the draft, the expectations are almost unrealistic. That is why it is important, if he does get him [Mendoza], that we build a system of football around them."

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