Silver And Black Pride on Fernando Mendoza

Mendoza benched for Cousins; one poor performance could spark fan demand for rookie

Fernando Mendoza, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, has been benched in favor of veteran Kirk Cousins as the Raiders' starting quarterback. Head coach Klint Kubiak opted not to throw Mendoza into the fire as an NFL neophyte, instead leveraging Cousins' familiarity with the coaching staff. However, one poor performance from Cousins could trigger Raider Nation to demand Mendoza become the starter, particularly given the high stakes of the home opener and fan base expectations.

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