Andrew Buller-Russ
By all appearances, the Las Vegas Raiders are preparing to make Fernando Mendoza the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. He’s even reportedly already learning the offense from Brian Griese, who overlapped with first-year Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak on the 49ers in 2023.
Yet, Mendoza isn’t expected to be the Raiders’ Week 1 starter. Las Vegas would prefer to find a bridge QB who can hold down the starting job until they determine that the Heisman winner is ready for the job, however long that may be.
Recently, The Athletic‘s Saad Yousuf tossed out an idea on just who that QB might be. His idea is for the Raiders to sign free agent Kirk Cousins.
The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback wants an opportunity to play after being limited to just eight starts in 2025. That opportunity could come in Vegas, where he’d be an ideal veteran mentor for the rookie QB.
Not only does Cousins have 14 seasons of NFL experience, but he also spent the first three seasons of his career largely as a backup, only starting nine games to that point. Mendoza’s career surely won’t start the same, but that doesn’t mean he can’t learn a lot from Cousins early on.
In the end, Cousins and the Raiders may be a perfect fit. He gets to play (even if there’s no guarantee he’ll play long), and they ensure a bright veteran who isn’t afraid to put the work in can help train their young franchise QB.
Related: 2026 NFL Mock Draft: End of March Edition
