Why Raiders Will Have All Hands on Deck Moving Forward

As the 2026 regular season approaches, the Las Vegas Raiders continue to move along with their plan of turning things around sooner rather than later. Las Vegas has had quite the offseason, making significant changes from the top down. The Raiders have improved through additions and subtractions.

Las Vegas' roster will look very different in 2026. However, the plans the Raiders' front office has go far beyond just this upcoming season. Las Vegas is thinking long term. As many of their offseason moves were for 2026, much of this offseason has been about the future.

Raiders Move Forward

That future will undoubtedly be centered around the carefully constructed rise of quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Las Vegas selected with the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft, marking only the second time in franchise history that they selected first overall.

With their struggles at the quarterback position over the past few seasons, and the investments made in and around Mendoza, the Raiders' front office is determined to do all they can to set their soon-to-be franchise quarterback up for a long, productive career in Las Vegas.

McCoy's Impact

After his arrival, Klint Kubiak quickly filled out his coaching staff. He started the process by immediately making Mike McCoy his first hire, naming McCoy the team's assistant head coach. McCoy's decades of experience and prior ties to Kubiak factored into his hiring.

More specifically, McCoy's prior experience with several former quarterbacks who were drafted No. 1 overall or highly drafted played a role in Kubiak's decision to bring him in as well. So far, McCoy has been impressed by what he has seen from Mendoza this offseason, albeit in a small sample size.

"Well, the great thing about Fernando [Mendoza] is, and I go back to one of the first times I met him or even go back to the combine when you have the interviews and things like that - you don't have a lot of time at the combine - but is the questions that he asked," McCoy said.

"He wants to know why, and that's the great thing. And I think Andrew [Janocko] and the rest of the offensive staff have done a great job, because the first year is a challenge, not just for rookies, but for everybody."

The Raiders have thrown a lot at a Mendoza in a short amount of time and have been doing so before he was drafted. Las Vegas has continued to pepper Mendoza with information and repetitions, hoping to help shorten his learning curve. He has taken it all in stride.

McCoy elaborated, noting that everyone in Las Vegas' coaching staff and front office has been on the same page regarding Mendoza's development. The Raiders made the most of the time they had in Organized Team Activities and mandatory minicamp. Now, they will prepare for training camp.

“There's so much information, and you're installing a system for the long haul. It's not just this year, but it's for the future, and it changes from year to year, don't get me wrong there. You're always adjusting to your players and what they do best. But the great thing about it is just the way the coaches have decided, 'Okay, we have these six installs, this is how we're going to install it. We're going to repeat it a number of times for the offseason program,'" McCoy said.

“They're going to come back to training camp, it's back to day-one install again. But the most important thing is to explain to these players, this is why we do it this way, this is why the footwork is, this is why we have a certain five-step drop, seven-step drop, quick-passing game, all those different things. Here's the protection rules and really explain to all the players this is why we're doing things."

Mendoza echoed a similar sentiment, noting that the connection between the Raiders' offensive brain trust and the quarterbacks' room has helped him significantly. Las Vegas has set Mendoza up to progress at a steady pace rather than forcing him to pick things up quickly.

"I think that really stems from the support of the quarterback room, coming from the coaches and the other quarterbacks from day one, voicing that I should ask questions if I have any hiccups or if I have any inconsistencies about any concepts," Mendoza said.

"'Hey Fernando, ask a question. We won't ever think this, ask questions, ask questions.' So, that has developed my flexibility in meetings to ask questions, which I really applaud them for allowing me to do that, and it's helped me a ton."

“And it's not only about asking questions, most of it is actually listening, listening to the conversations, taking it in, and listening to the end of the conversation, and then sometimes at the end of the meeting when your question wasn't answered, then deploy that."

Las Vegas is all on one accord when it comes to Mendoza, and seemingly everything else. Since the start of the offseason, the Raiders' front office has carried itself well. They have made moves that confirm they are now a competent front office, which has not been the case in some time.

Time will tell how successful the Raiders will be and how soon. However, it is already apparent that Las Vegas has made significant strides to move past the dysfunction that has followed it for much of the last few seasons. Only wins and losses will matter in the long run, as they determine success.

Yet, the Raiders will take care of that when the time comes. They do not have to worry about winning regular-season games in June and July. As Las Vegas creeps closer to training camp and then the regular season, all they can do is continue taking their time and making quality moves.

The future will come soon enough for Las Vegas, as the 2026 offseason and regular season are as much about its long-term hopes as its short-term ones. Mendoza's development will be critical to both.

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