Fantasy Football 2026: How Fernando Mendoza Can Improve the Las Vegas Raiders Offense
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Fernando Mendoza and the Indiana Hoosiers are now improbably College Football National Champions. It is perhaps the greatest feat in sports history, better than Leicester City winning the Premier League or the 9-7 Giants beating the 16-0 Patriots in the Super Bowl. The biggest takeaway of all may be that of their star Quarterback. Mendoza is now the -8000 favorite to go to the Raiders at first overall, so we will now measure how it may impact that offense in 2026.
Raiders 2026 Projected Team
Head Coach: Klint Kubiak has a 38% chance to get the job, per Kalshi. Jesse Minter is 26%, Sean McDermott 15%, and Davis Webb 10%. One way or another, there will be a great offensive mind hired either for the job, or at offensive coordinator.
Running Back: Ashton Jeanty
Wide Receivers: Tre Tucker, Jack Bech, Dont'e Thornton, Free Agent/Draft Pick TBD?
Tight End: Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer
How Will Fernando Mendoza Affect the Offense?
Fernando Mendoza YOU are a Las Vegas Raider pic.twitter.com/Nz8mFi4MMH
— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) January 4, 2026
It is always very difficult to accurately project an NFL prospect. Of course, Mendoza is highly touted, but who will he compare to? Caleb Williams is thriving, but others like Bryce Young or Cam Ward have shown mediocrity.
In terms of skillset, Mendoza has it. He is highly accurate, with an elite IQ, not seen since the likes of Andrew Luck. He is also mobile, but has average arm strength. We would expect that Mendoza can perform well, but with protection and good coaching.
If Mendoza conservatively becomes a top-20 NFL Quarterback in his rookie year, he will be a quick upgrade to anything fielded by the Raiders in 2025. Among Quarterbacks who saw at least (150) dropback in 2025, Geno Smith ranked 37th/43. Kenny Pickett, though limited in playing time, was very bad as well.
2026 Stock Watch
Ashton Jeanty: Any uptick from Jeanty will come from two factors — more scoring, and better blocking. Mendoza can help the scoring, but not so much the blocking. Regardless, Jeanty should become a Top-10 Fantasy Football Running Back, and he very well can be Top-5 with upgrades on the offensive line.
Tre Tucker: If he maintains his WR1 job, he will rise quite a bit. We cannot numerically nail down the number, but I would expect the Raiders offense to rise to become a mid-tier group next year. Tucker can become a Top-20 Wide Receiver, at his best. More likely, he will be low-end WR2/high-end Flex.
Jack Bech/Dont'e Thornton: Truth be honest, neither of these rookie's broke out in their rookie campaigns. Until we see this, they lack much value. The highest value will likely be with Bech. He is explosive in space, and Mendoza has shown great trust in his guys at Indiana to make plays. E.g. Charlie Becker and Elijah Saratt. Both of them could break into Flex roles with a WR2 upside, in a best-case scenario.
Brock Bowers: It does not take much to make him the TE1 in Fantasy Football. He is already going to be top-2, in debate with Trey McBride. If Mendoza is just okay, Bowers could be TE1. He has a very high ceiling.
Michael Mayer: If the Raiders add little to their Wide Receiver Room, Mayer could very well be a Top-3 pass-catcher, and maybe even number two, ahead of Tucker. Indiana did not heavily use the Tight End, but they did. It will be more up to the new coaching hire to decide how much they involve Mayer. Mendoza will not affect that matter as much.
Per the FPI, the Raiders finished the season as the 28th rated offense in the NFL. With Mendoza, the can very likely become a Top-20 offense, especially compounded with a great offensive-minded hire. Any coach will likely be a downgrade from what Mendoza had in Curt Cignetti. Nonetheless, he can thrive.
The Raiders have weapons that I would grade as a C-. They can make the right moves to upgrade to a B-/B. Again, that can make them a more average unit in the NFL.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.