The Las Vegas Raiders spent the 16th overall pick in April’s draft on a quarterback who wasn’t supposed to be there. Fernando Mendoza — the University of Miami’s record-setting passer — had been projected as a top-10 selection before a late slide on draft night delivered him to a Raiders franchise desperate for a long-term answer under center. Now, with training camp underway in Henderson, Nevada, the question is no longer whether Mendoza can play. It’s whether he can start — and whether his rookie season could end with hardware.
Who Is Fernando Mendoza?
Mendoza’s college story reads like a Miami screenplay. A three-star recruit from Miami’s Christopher Columbus High School — the same program that produced NFL receivers Johnnie Dixon and Xzavier Henderson — Mendoza stayed home and walked on at “The U” before earning a scholarship and eventually rewriting the program’s record books. His 2025 season was historic: 4,713 passing yards, 44 touchdowns, and a completion percentage north of 69% in an offense that asked him to carry the Hurricanes week after week. Miami won 11 games and finished in the top 10 for the first time since 2017. Mendoza was the reason.
Scouts love the arm talent — a live, whippy release that generates velocity from awkward platforms — and the processing speed. Concerns center on his frame (6’1″, 212 lbs), his tendency to hold the ball too long in the pocket, and the leap from the ACC to NFL defenses that will punish every hesitation. The Raiders, who have started nine different quarterbacks since Derek Carr’s departure in 2023, are betting that the processing speed translates and the frame holds up. They don’t have much choice.
Training Camp: Early Impressions
The early returns from Raiders camp suggest a rookie who is exactly where you’d expect a mid-first-round quarterback to be in late July: brilliant in flashes, lost in others, and learning at a speed that has impressed the coaching staff. Mendoza has taken the majority of second-team reps behind veteran journeyman Gardner Minshew, but his first-team cameos have generated the kind of buzz that Raiders beat reporters don’t usually traffic in.
“He can make every throw,” wide receiver Davante Adams said after Wednesday’s practice. “The ball placement, the touch — you don’t see that from rookies, man. He’s got something.” Adams, who at 33 is running out of patience for quarterback reclamation projects, was not speaking in clichés. Neither was head coach Antonio Pierce, who has been measured but unmistakably intrigued by what he’s seen. “We’re bringing him along the right way,” Pierce said. “But the arm talent speaks for itself.”
The Depth Chart: Will He Start in 2026?
The Raiders enter camp with Minshew atop the depth chart — a designation that feels more like a placeholder than a plan. Minshew has been a capable NFL starter in stretches (his 2023 season with the Colts produced 15 touchdowns against nine interceptions), but he’s 30 years old and has never been viewed as a long-term answer by any of the four franchises he’s played for. The Raiders, who went 7-10 last season, are projected to win between six and eight games in 2026. If the season goes sideways — and in Las Vegas, it usually does — the call for Mendoza will be deafening.
The Rookie of the Year conversation feels premature, but the class of 2026 is thin at quarterback. If Mendoza wins the job by midseason and produces even league-average numbers, he’ll be in the mix. In a league where rookie quarterbacks are starting earlier than ever — and succeeding — the Raiders’ timeline with Mendoza might be faster than anyone in the organization wants to admit. The future is already in the building. The question is when the building is ready for it.
Rookie of the Year Chances
The Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation is dominated by running backs and wide receivers in most draft classes, but the 2026 quarterback class is thin — and thin classes create opportunities. If Mendoza starts 10 or more games and produces even league-average numbers (3,500 yards, 20 touchdowns, fewer than 12 interceptions), he’ll be in the mix almost by default. His biggest competition will likely come from the running back class, where Jeremiyah Love and a handful of other early-round picks will be hunting for 1,200-yard seasons.
But awards are a December conversation. Right now, Mendoza is just trying to earn the trust of a coaching staff that has seen too many quarterbacks fail in silver and black. The Raiders haven’t had a quarterback start 16 games in a season since Carr in 2021. They haven’t had a quarterback they drafted start more than 10 games since… it’s been a while. Mendoza has the talent to break both streaks. The only question is when the Raiders let him try.
Sources: NFL.com, ESPN, The Athletic
Last updated: July 31, 2026