One of the biggest questions surrounding the Miami Dolphins’ Week 1 matchup may not be a question at all
If you were hoping for the Miami Dolphins to catch a rookie in Week 1, the latest update may be throwing those odds on ice.
The Miami Dolphins‘ schedule has already gotten a ton of gassing up this offseason.
It is, on paper, not an easy road. And as this year plays out, the dynamics of those teams will evolve. That is, of course, with the exception of one. The first one, the Las Vegas Raiders. And a new update from one of the NFL’s best insiders appears to leave little doubt about one big question surrounding the Miami Dolphins’ Week 1 opponent.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport leaves very little room for doubt in which QB the Miami Dolphins will face Week 1
“Do (the Las Vegas Raiders) really have a QB battle is an interesting conversation. Obviously Fernando Mendoza — number one overall pick. It certainly seems like the way they’re planning, the way they’re hoping for it to all be, is for Kirk Cousins to be the starter. At the beginning of the season, throughout the season, at the end of the season. Because that means he is playing well. It means he has stayed healthy and it means Fernando Mendoza can sit there and learn.”
— NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport
Even if this isn’t how the 2026 season goes for the Las Vegas Raiders, it’s important to note that the Miami Dolphins are first up on the schedule. If this is how the Raiders want this season to go, odds are they’re going to be willing to let it roll into the regular season. And that means we shouldn’t have much hope for a compelling storyline in Week 1 — with Mendoza not getting the chance to start against his hometown team. Things, of course, can always change. But it certainly feels like it is Kirk Cousins battling the Miami Dolphins in Week 1.
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