It once felt like a foregone conclusion that Fernando Mendoza would be the Las Vegas Raiders' starting quarterback during the 2026 NFL season. But those days have long passed. Kirk Cousins is in the driver's seat, and Aidan O'Connell has been no slouch, either. Mendoza is in a full-on battle.
A learning curve was expected for Mendoza, but reports from offseason practices almost made it seem as if the young quarterback was behind. But he's not; Mendoza is progressing at a great rate, according to both him and the coaching staff. The future doesn't necessarily have to be right now.
But Raider Nation wants to have confidence that Mendoza is moving in the right direction, and they want to see it during the preseason with their own eyes. And that journey continues during training camp, which will be a huge chance for Mendoza to show his stuff in a more realistic football setting.
Progress should be the name of the game in Las Vegas, not perfection. The long term prognosis is more important right now than anything acute. But what does success look like for Mendoza in training camp? Well, it starts and ends, of course, with doing what his coaches ask of him.
Fernando Mendoza is leaning on Las Vegas Raiders' coaches to define training camp success
Mendoza was recently a guest on The Rush With Maxx Crosby, and the two franchise cornerstones chopped it up about all things Raiders. But Crosby's co-host, Brogan Roback, a former quarterback himself, asked Mendoza how he is defining success during training camp.
"Yeah, I think especially when setting outward goals, I believe it's always better to lean on mentors and coaches and people that know more than I do at that point," Mendoza said. "For example, I believe that [head] coach [Klint] Kubiak, [offensive coordinator Andrew] Janocko, and [QB] coach [Mike] Sullivan would have a better idea of what a successful training camp is in their plan and progression for me than I do at this current moment. So, I get with them, we talk about my goals, 'Hey, this is where we want to be.'"
Pretty boring, but pretty great, too. Mendoza just gets it. It's not about flashing his ability to move in the pocket or proving that he can throw on the run. It's not about the footwork under center. While all of that is important, the pinnacle is earning the trust of the offensive staff. That comes first.
And it sounds like this has been a work in progress ever since Mendoza donned the Silver and Black officially in late April. The Raiders laid out a detailed plan for the rookie quarterback with mile markers and specific outlines for each month of the offseason.
"The start of training camp past OTAs, we've talked about that. We have a June plan and July plan. Then, 'Hey, this is where we want to be at the end of training camp, and this is where we want to be in preseason,'" Mendoza shared. "My job is to try to exceed those; exceed those mile markers every single day. And I am able to do that by focusing, like Maxx does, on the present moment."
Again, this all sounds like pretty generic stuff. Mendoza says all the right things, and he has since he was in middle and high school and at Cal. He continued to be this way when he was thrust into the spotlight as an Indiana Hoosier. It's just who he is.
That may be a bit boring to some people, but it's actually a great thing. A franchise quarterback who is humble, smart and knows how to convey himself. There won't be any petty moments in the media or awkwardness in the locker room. Mendoza will steer this ship away from any unwanted headlines.
Is he ready to play right away? Nobody knows. He still has some time to work on that, even if he isn't right now. But he's already got it between the ears and in his heart, which isn't insignificant. And if he can have success at training camp by listening to his coaches, good things will follow the youngster.
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