Las Vegas Raiders rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza finally got his chance, and he didn’t disappoint
The Las Vegas Raiders made the right call by giving Fernando Mendoza the final offensive drive against the Patriots.
The Las Vegas Raiders got whooped up by the New England Patriots. But in a way, that was a good thing. No one loves seeing their team lose 45-17. But it gave them a chance to see what the future could be, as rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza made his NFL debut.
Mendoza did great, all things considered. A few things are worth mentioning: No one was expecting him to go in for one drive and score a touchdown. Also, the Patriots weren’t playing the same way on defense as they did in the first half. They played much more conservatively. Still, Mendoza had some good moments.
Nothing crazy happened. He didn’t have a huge, game-changing play. But he ran the offense smoothly, as well as he could, given he was also playing with backup players. Mendoza went 6/8 for 48 yards and had one three-yard scramble. That scramble was very close to a fourth-down conversion.
He hit the checkdown time and time again. He found open receivers and stayed aware in the pocket. Mendoza also made his reads and progressions extremely well. Now, remember, there’s not as much going on with the defense as maybe Kirk Cousins was dealing with, but you still love to see it. He got some valuable reps. Mendoza looked good. But there’s bad news for the fans.
Fernando Mendoza getting some reps vs. the Patriots doesn’t mean he’s going to be the starter
I know a portion of the fan base will call for Mendoza to start now. But it’s just not time yet. Sure, he got some reps. But he’s still not ready. And he won’t really ever be ready until it actually happens. That’s just the nature of the game. Going up against what he did on Sunday vs. starting a game is completely different.
And Kirk Cousins is not the reason the Raiders have lost their last two games. He’s just not. He went 19/28 for 243 yards with one passing touchdown. Those numbers aren’t great, but he doesn’t have a wide receiver one. And his running back is injured and playing through it. He was sacked three times, and the penalties were atrocious. The offensive line played terribly. Cousins will keep getting his shot.
