The Las Vegas Raiders have not told the fanbase what they plan to do with the No. 1 pick, which they hold for the first time since they took JaMarcus Russell in 2007. There are plenty of signs, however, that they will make Fernando Mendoza the first quarterback they draft in the first round since Russell.
Las Vegas' front office is doing what it can to make his transition to the NFL go smoothly. Since landing the top pick, Las Vegas has hired Klint Kubiak, the top offensive coach available in this year's hiring cycle, and signed Tyler Linderbaum, the top offensive lineman available in free agency.
There has been plenty of chatter about whether or not Mendoza has the ability to succeed in the league. Former NFL quarterback and current analyst Dan Orlovsky recently highlighted one area he believes the quarterback must improve on to maximize his potential.
Dan Orlovsky believes Fernando Mendoza must improve on going through his progressions at the NFL level
Mendoza proved that he can rise to the occasion during his 2025 season, where he threw for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a 72.0% completion rate, while adding 276 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
His performance earned him the Heisman Trophy, as he also led the Indiana Hoosiers to their first national title in program history. Despite his impressive season, ESPN's Orlovsky believes that Mendoza needs to improve at going through his reads.
"There's not a lot of evidence of him down the field getting through a progression one to two to three. His greatest superpower is he avoids negative plays, so a lot of times it's like No. 1, down... Risk-averse. You're not going to be great in the NFL kind of living like that," Orlovsky said. "So, I think that there is plenty of clips on tape where you sit there and go, 'Why didn't you get to that in route?' or, 'Why didn't you cut that seam loose?' It's a good play because it's not a negative play... How is that going to translate to the NFL?"
Now, that may be a very fair point. Of course, it's not a bad thing to mitigate risk, and Mendoza has frequently shown the ability to make big-time throws. But if a former NFL quarterback wants to see something more, who are we to argue?
But Orlovsky highlighted a play from late in the second quarter of the Hoosiers' 56-22 victory over the Oregon Ducks in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. While Mendoza took the checkdown on the play highlighted, the route that the former quarterback wanted to see him target was not that open.
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Furthermore, the play came with Indiana leading 21-7 and set to receive the ball to begin the second half, limiting the need to take a risk. Mendoza completed passes on the next three plays for 61 yards and a touchdown, putting his team in complete control of the matchup.
Rookie mistakes will certainly be a part of Mendoza's learning curve as he embarks on his NFL career, and that is something fans should be prepared for. The idea that he should force things just to move the ball down the field is not what Raider Nation should want to see from the quarterback.
Taking the checkdown is sometimes the smart play, as evidenced by how the rest of the drive highlighted by Orlovsky turned out. As Raiders fans saw with Geno Smith's league-leading 17 interceptions in 2025, forcing the ball downfield can lead to plenty of mistakes and turnovers that put your team behind the eight ball.
Maximizing possessions ultimately plays a big role in winning or losing. That is especially true in the modern NFL, where teams are often a few positive plays away from scoring range. While Mendoza will make rookie mistakes, his decision to target his checkdown on the play highlighted was certainly the right call.