Now that Fernando Mendoza is officially a Las Vegas Raider, with some offseason practice sessions under his belt and the 2026 NFL schedule out, predicting when he'll make his first regular season start has become a cottage industry.
If we're being honest, even with a late bye week complicating things a bit, there's really no wrong way to go. Some are in the camp of starting Mendoza right away as long as he proves worthy. Others say that if things are going well with Kirk Cousins, then Mendoza sitting his entire rookie year is in play.
Almost anywhere between Week 1 and the Week 13 bye lands as most people's sweet spot for Mendoza to make his first NFL start. But the latest prediction seems a bit too close to one of those extremes and begs an obvious question about what happened to Cousins.
New prediction for Fernando Mendoza's first start brings an obvious question
Garrett Podell of CBS Sports is among the latest to offer a prediction for when Mendoza will make his first start. After offering a few potential options, including one that looks particularly enticing with an extra possible angle attached to it, Podell settled on the one he feels is most ideal.
"It will be incredibly invaluable for Mendoza to observe Cousins' game-week routine that's allowed him to enter his 15th NFL season in 2026, but there will come a point where the first overall pick will need to play in order to truly develop.
"That ideal point would probably be Week 3 at the New Orleans Saints. Doing so would allow Mendoza to see how Cousins prepares to face both a rebuilding team like the Dolphins and a 2025 playoff team with a stout defense like the Los Angeles Chargers before taking the field himself against another rebuilding team in the Saints."
Watching Cousins prepare during the week and play in games can absolutely be valuable for Mendoza. However, pointing to Week 3 against the Saints as the game he makes his first start brings one question.
If he'd be good to take over for Cousins in Week 3, why not just start Mendoza in Week 1? Plus, two weeks doesn't feel like an adequate chance for Cousins to prove himself. The Dolphins are projected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL this season, so it would be an easy debut spot for Mendoza.
Week 2 against the Chargers will be a far stiffer challenge, which could factor into the decision to start him Week 1 or not. But after the Saints, the Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams in Weeks 4-7 are tough matchups, too.
It will be impossible for Mendoza to avoid facing any tough defenses this season whenever he inevitably makes his debut. Any easy matchups on the Raiders' schedule are mostly a one-week thing before their situation gets far tougher.
Whenever the decision is made to start Mendoza this season, only an injury, incomprehensibly awful play or an especially one-sided game should really take him off the field. If it's not going to be Week 1, Week 3 feels too quick, and an awfully short leash for Cousins if there are no other factors in play.
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