Fernando Mendoza Prepares for NFL Season with Raiders

Fernando Mendoza is getting ready for his debut season in the NFL with the Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders picked him as the No. 1 overall selection in the 2026 draft. Mendoza led the Indiana Hoosiers to an unbeaten 2025 season and won a national championship.

Mendoza’s impressive achievements include winning the Heisman Trophy last year. Despite this, he faces a steep learning curve as an NFL player.

Guidance from a Legend

The Raiders’ offensive coordinator, Andrew Janocko, holds discussions with quarterbacks Fernando Mendoza and Kirk Cousins during minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center in Henderson, Nev., on June 9, 2026. Mendoza recently shared advice he received from the team’s minority owner, Tom Brady.

“I think what he said as a quarterback is you need to be the most everything. You need to be the most competitive. You need to be the most leader. You have to have the most leadership,” Mendoza shared via the Raiders’ YouTube page. “You need to be the toughest, both mentally and physically. And you’ve got to embody all these things and lead by example before gaining that equity and respect from your teammates in order to lead effectively.”

Learning From Experience

Mendoza also has access to advice from veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins, although Cousins does not regard their relationship as a traditional mentorship. “I think to say I’m mentoring them is a bit of a reach, probably more of a narrative than it is the truth,” Cousins mentioned last week via The Athletic. “They’re pretty good players and pretty experienced, and I’m learning a lot from them too and asking questions of them.”

The question remains if Mendoza will start in Week 1. Cousins, who signed a two-year, $12.6 million deal with the Raiders in the offseason, still appears to have plenty to offer.

Senior editor Ryan Gaydos provides sports insights for Fox News Digital.