Raiders' veteran, rookie quarterbacks building a brotherhood this offseason

Las Vegas Raiders backmost Fernando Mendoza responds to a question during a quality league astatine Las Vegas Raiders headquarters/Intermountain Health Performance Center successful Henderson Friday, April 24, 2026. The Raiders acquired Mendoza with the archetypal wide prime successful the 2026 NFL draught connected Thursday. Photo by: Steve Marcus

As a stretching play ended to commence the commencement of the 2nd Raiders’ authoritative offseason practice, the full squad came unneurotic successful a ellipse astatine the extremity enactment of 1 of the team’s fields astatine their office successful Henderson.

Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza were close successful the middle, offering much high-fives and words of information than perchance immoderate different brace of players connected the roster.

Call it due placement due to the fact that the brace of freshly arrived quarterbacks are astatine the halfway of everything for the Raiders’ upcoming seventh play since moving to Las Vegas.

“Two truly competitory guys,” caput manager Klint Kubiak said aft the practice. “I’ve been truly pleased with their enactment ethic.”

The Raiders signed the 15-year NFL seasoned Cousins, who volition crook 38 years aged earlier the commencement of the season, to what’s fundamentally a one-year declaration successful aboriginal April. They past selected the reigning Heisman Trophy- and College Football Playoff-winning Mendoza, who’s 22 years old, with the No. 1 wide prime successful the NFL Draft.

Both person spoken astir an purpose and assurance successful bringing the champion retired of each other, but they’ll besides beryllium competing successful signifier implicit the adjacent fewer months to spot who earns the close to start. The Raiders unfastened the 2026-2027 run September 13 astatine Allegiant Stadium against the Miami Dolphins.

“I made this wide to Klint: The champion subordinate needs to play,” Cousins said. “If that’s not me, I don’t privation to beryllium retired there.”

The anticipation for astir of the offseason has been that Cousins volition commencement the year. Raiders wide manager John Spytek and de facto manager of shot operations Tom Brady person mostly voiced a penchant to dilatory a rookie into his archetypal nonrecreational season.

But the NFL’s docket announcement this period whitethorn person analyzable those plans, arsenic the Raiders’ toughest agelong of games comes successful the mediate of the season, erstwhile galore assumed Mendoza would instrumentality over.

Now the Raiders whitethorn beryllium much consenting to get Mendoza connected the tract earlier against what should beryllium much forgiving competition.

The nuances of the backmost concern aren’t affecting the narration betwixt Cousins and Mendoza either way. Mendoza said Cousins was 1 of 4 Raiders to scope retired to him instantly connected draught night, and they’ve lone connected much since some coming to Las Vegas for offseason squad activities.

The Raiders’ societal media squad adjacent produced immoderate viral contented retired of their friendship, spoofing the 2008 movie Step Brothers with its yearly docket uncover video starring the 2 quarterbacks.

“I’d emotion for him to absorption connected shot more,” the no-nonsense Kubiak responded erstwhile asked however he’d complaint Mendoza’s acting skills.

Kubiak and Co. mightiness beryllium trying to downplay it, but Mendoza has passed the trial of his archetypal fewer practices with flying colors. He’s looked similar a earthy successful the admittedly tiny fraction of Kubiak’s discourtesy that the Raiders are drilling. But helium inactive chiefly practiced with the rookies successful the 2nd full-team session.

Cousins took the bulk of the first-team snaps, with mainstay erstwhile starter Aidan O’Connell rotating successful up of Mendoza.

“It’s bully to commencement connected the bottommost of the totem pole,” Mendoza said. “I person a batch to larn and a batch of increasing with large coaches and large players astir me.” 

Kubiak is looking for perfection retired of his quarterbacks. He won’t hesitate to connection immoderate criticisms, including connected thing arsenic trivial arsenic the pre-practice encouragement circle. 

“I thought it was a small excessively lengthy,” helium said. “We astir apt mislaid 2 minutes of signifier clip close there, truthful we tin dap it up a small quicker adjacent time.”