The Las Vegas Raiders signed quarterback Kirk Cousins for more than one reason. Yes, they wanted a veteran who could start and win games, and he has. He has played well at times. However, the bigger reason was always about the future. Las Vegas wanted a mentor who could guide the franchise toward the day it hands the keys to quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Cousins knew that from the start. He was fine being the guy who wouldn’t be the guy. He accepted that he could be handing the reins to the franchise quarterback next year, or maybe even this year.

Raiders’ losing streak has the Fernando Mendoza talk back

The Raiders opened the season with three straight wins. Since then, they have dropped four in a row, and the conversation about Mendoza has returned in full force. Those talks won’t go away anytime soon, and Cousins knows it.

He also hasn’t lost sight of why the Raiders brought him in.

“It’s really the same everyday that it was int March or April,” Cousins said. “I mean, nothing changes in the sense that if I’m not the best option, then I don’t want to be out there either. I want our football team to have the best chance to win games. And if the first OTA, if that had become apparent, I would have been the first one to say, ‘Yeah, you can’t play me.’

“So nothing changes and the organization will do what they feel is best. But I feel that Fernando’s [Mendoza] done a great job and has a bright future ahead. I’m going to try to go out there and play as well as I possibly can, help us win, and give him a great example to learn from until he does go out there eventually.”

You have to love that from Cousins. He is humble, and he understands where he is in his career. He knows he doesn’t have much time left in the NFL, and he seems completely at peace with it.

That attitude matters in a locker room that is trying to stop the bleeding. A veteran quarterback who fights the transition can make life miserable for a young player and a coaching staff. Cousins is doing the opposite. He is openly saying the organization will do what it feels is best, and that he will set the right example until Mendoza gets his chance.

Cousins has earned the right to play this role

Cousins has had a great career. It has been full of big moments, and that résumé is exactly what puts him in this position. He has the credibility to mentor Mendoza and the security to step aside when the time comes.

Not every veteran handles this situation well. Some cling to the job as long as they can. Cousins is treating it as part of the assignment, and that’s what Vegas was banking on when it signed him.

Now, the obvious question: when does the switch happen? I’m not sure, and the Raiders aren’t tipping their hand either. Head coach Klint Kubiak was asked when it is time to start thinking about the future and Mendoza.

“Right now we are thinking about everything,” Kubiak said.

That doesn’t answer the question. Still, it shows the staff is at least weighing when Mendoza becomes the starter. At 3-4, with momentum heading in the wrong direction, that conversation was always going to come up. Las Vegas faces the New York Jets next. Mendoza could get the nod there, though that probably won’t happen.

It could be the week after, or later in the season. We will have to see how the Raiders respond over the next couple of games. Either way, Cousins has made his stance clear. Whenever Kubiak and the Raiders decide it’s Mendoza’s time, the veteran won’t stand in the way.