With the recent signing of Kirk Cousins and the expectation that Fernando Mendoza will be the No. 1 pick of the 2026 NFL draft, there’s been a lot of discussion about how the dynamic of the Las Vegas Raiders’ quarterback situation will function this season. On Thursday, former Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon weighed in on the matter via “Upon Further Review” with Paul Gutierrez of the team’s website.
“What I would advise [Cousins] is that he needs to come in there and compete Day 1,” the 2002 MVP said. “Don’t worry about who gets drafted, when they get drafted, what the quarterback room [looks like] – my job is to be prepared, and I’m going to compete. By competing, you’re going to make everyone in that room better. If we’re so fortunate to be able to get Fernando Mendoza in the draft, which I think we will, I want there to be competition, right?”
When it comes to who should start Week 1, Gannon said, “Who cares?”, telling Raider Nation to be patient and worry about that closer to the start of the season. But he did provide an outlook on how to approach making that decision.
“In terms of what the spring and summer looks like, I would imagine that Mendoza is going to get just about all the reps,” Gannon explained. “We want to get him as many reps as possible. Why? Because Kirk Cousins doesn’t need a lot of reps in May, June and July. He doesn’t. So we want to get the young rookie up to speed and we want to give him as many reps as possible.
“And then at that point, when we get into the preseason, we can decide, ‘OK, this kid’s ready to play.’ Or, ‘You know what, maybe he’s not ready to play Week 1. Let’s go with the veteran and let’s find a way to eventually work him into the lineup.’”
In Other Raiders Links:
- Cousins on the QB situation: “Cousins fully embraces this reality and explained to head coach Klint Kubiak that ‘the best player needs to play. If that’s not me, I don’t want to be out there,’” the quarterback said, via ESPN’s Ryan McFadden. ”‘I don’t think that’s the best thing for the team. If I am the best option, then I believe it’s important that those guys are out there.’”
- Draft plan at free safety: Some thoughts on how to fill the void on the backend of the defense.
- Can Klint Kubiak unlock Tre Tucker: “Among Las Vegas new lead man’s comments when asked about the offense is quite intriguing though: Tre Tucker,” S&BP’s Ray Aspuria wrote. “Kubiak was initially asked about the wide receiver (heading into his fourth year in the league) at the NFL Scouting Combine (at the tail end of February). And a month later, at the Annual League Meeting, Kubiak brought up Tucker again — this time unprompted.”
- Inside the Jon Gruden 2.0 era: The Athletic’s Zak Keefer dove into the rise and fall of Chucky’s return to the Silver and Black.
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