'Gym rat' Fernando Mendoza is right pick for Raiders – if team is patient | Opinion

Jarrett Bell, USA TODAYWed, April 15, 2026 at 10:04 AM UTC

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With the countdown ticking for Fernando Mendoza to christen the NFL Draft – and likely a new era for the Las Vegas Raiders as the No. 1 pick overall – somebody just had roll back the clock with Troy Aikman.

A generation ago, in 1989, Aikman was that hotshot quarterback at the top of the draft. And it sure worked out. He led the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl titles and has a bust in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

But man, that NFL initiation was rough. Now it provides keen insight into the challenge ahead for Mendoza, who won the Heisman Trophy and a national championship at Indiana, but is poised to start his NFL journey with a franchise that for years has been stuck in mediocrity.

“It just takes some time,” Aikman told USA TODAY Sports, walking and talking during the recent NFL owners meetings. “I think him understanding that and being patient with it all is going to be key for him.”

Patience. Sounds like a plan. Until, as Mike Tyson once declared, you get hit in the mouth. Then it becomes a plan in action. Mendoza has certainly demonstrated much grit; he scrapped his way from a barely-recruited prospect coming out of high school to ultimate draft-night prize. Yet hard-knock lessons in the NFL represent another type of beast.

“I really think that’s how you’ve got to approach it, to try to not only learn more about yourself, but to learn more about the league that’s different from where you come from,” Aikman added, flashing back to his rookie year.

“Hell, I was 0-11, so I didn’t win one game. But the good thing for me was as difficult as it was, the hardest year I’ve ever been through, I didn’t lose my confidence.”

Raiders roster challenges go beyond quarterback position

The Raiders have yet to publicly confirm that Mendoza will be the pick to open the draft festivities in Pittsburgh, yet with new coach Klint Kubiak collaborating with second-year general manager John Spytek (and with part-owner Tom Brady behind the scenes), they have done nothing to signal otherwise. And earlier this month, they signed veteran Kirk Cousins as the expected bridge quarterback to conceivably lessen the pressure on Mendoza.

Perhaps Mendoza someday will be hailed as the savior who blew in with the autumn wind and rescued a franchise. The Raiders, with their sixth coach in 10 years, haven’t made the playoffs since 2016 and haven’t won a postseason game since capturing the 2002 AFC title. Good luck, Mendoza, with sparking that turnaround while playing in one of the NFL’s toughest divisions.

Yet regardless of how well Mendoza navigates his NFL learning curve, the make-or-break factor hinges on him getting a lot of help, as in the supporting cast around him and the organizational plan to develop him. The results from last season’s 3-14 finish – the offense ranked last in points, yards, rushing yards, rushing average, touchdowns and first downs, and allowed the most sacks in the league – underscores just how much fixing is in order.

“Well, if you’re picking first, you’re usually not a very good team,” Raiders owner Mark Davis told USA TODAY Sports. “So, you’ve got a lot of holes to fill.”

1 / 0NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection1. Las Vegas Raiders – Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana

As he chatted recently in the lobby of the swank hotel where NFL owners met, Davis stayed with the script and didn’t confirm Mendoza will be the Raiders pick. Yet he clearly sounded like a man with a vision that fits.

“If you bring a guy in and you’re putting him behind a ‘not A+’ offensive line, then you’re risking his ability mentally, because he can get the crap beat out of him,” Davis said. “Or physically, because he’s going to get the crap beat out of him.”

So, holistic approach or bust?

“Yeah, you want a franchise quarterback, but you’ve got to get the other pieces, too,” Davis added. “So, John (Spytek) and Klint (Kubiak) both expressed the fact that they’re not afraid to have the guy sit for a while behind a veteran, if in fact that’s the case. Just to get his feet wet. Get his mind right. Learn the speed of the game. You know, all of that.”

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In addition to adding Cousins as potential mentor, the Raiders used a market-busting free agent deal to land center Tyler Lindenbaum (3 years, $81 million) as the new anchor of the O-line. Mendoza will love that, while the new speed receiver, Jalen Nailor, adds a dynamic dimension to the passing game. They made moves on defense, signing Nakobe Dean and Qway Walker, which addressed linebacker needs.

Still, this overhaul is just getting started. And the patience needed extends far beyond Mendoza, who will undoubtedly fuel much buzz after leading the nation last year with 41 TD passes. Clearly, the Raiders get it, which is why the signing of Cousins was crucial.

More: With Kirk Cousins signing, Raiders stare into their organizational abyss

Why Mendoza is right pick for Raiders, even if success takes time

Whether the Raider Nation fan base will be so willing to wait is TBD.

“You have to let them grow, you have to let them develop,” Carolina Panthers GM Dan Morgan told USA TODAY Sports. “We’re so quick to want guys to be who you want them to be and who you think they should be. You help them grow by surrounding them with the right weapons, the right coaching. Patience is like the biggest thing, and you’ve got to feed into them and help them grow. Because it’s not easy, first of all, being a first-round pick, let alone No. 1 overall, with all the weight on their shoulders.”

Morgan was part of the Panthers front office three years ago when Bryce Young was drafted No. 1 overall in 2023. And while Young took his lumps, C.J. Stroud, picked second overall by the Houston Texans, sparkled as a rookie. Then the second-guessing criticism grew even louder when Young was benched during his second season, replaced by veteran Andy Dalton.

Now Young, having clearly turned a corner with his game, is coming off his first playoff game after leading the Panthers to their first division crown.

“It just shows you how fast things can flip, just in terms of perception, right?” said Morgan, promoted from assistant GM to his current role in 2024. “I think it goes back to the anxious part of the world we live in, the social media world where there is so much noise out there. I think the people that have stayed disciplined and have a process for the player, that’s where you see those guys grow.”

There are enough examples of cases where quarterbacks, either picked No. 1 overall or otherwise high in the first round, didn’t pan out. Or panned out elsewhere. See Baker Mayfield. Or Sam Darnold. Or, uh, Anthony Richardson, now on the trade block, three years after the Indianapolis Colts drafted him fourth overall.

Aikman recognizes the organizational support as critical. In Mendoza’s case that will include tapping into Brady as a resource, which looms as one big advantage. Yet Aikman also loves what he’s heard about how Mendoza is wired.

“If you’re the No. 1 pick overall, I’d like to think you’ve got talent,” said Aikman, arguably the best game analyst in the NFL universe with his “Monday Night Football” role on ESPN. “So, what’s going to make him good, or great, or to have a successful career, is not going to be ability. It’s going to be what he has between the ears, and how he processes information and makes decisions.

“The fact that he’s won against good competition and had been well-coached has made a difference, and I like that he’s a gym rat, by all accounts. I think that’s very important. At that position, the guy has to be the first one in the building and the last one to leave. He has to want to be good. So, he checks all those boxes.”

Which makes Mendoza the right pick…yet anything but a quick fix.

Contact Bell at jbell@usatoday.com or follow on X: @JarrettBell

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Fernando Mendoza is perfect draft pick for Raiders – if they wait

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