The Las Vegas Raiders have their quarterback of the future in Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, but they must still figure out who their quarterback of the present will be. While Mendoza will eventually earn the keys to the kingdom, he may not start the season under center. After all, the team signed veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins to a respectable contract that heavily suggests they’re comfortable with him starting in 2025, at least early in the season.
While anything can happen between now and the start of the regular season, The Athletic‘s Matt Sando believes Kirk Cousins will be the Raiders’ starting quarterback. In a recent article, Sando relays a comment from an anonymous executive who said “All indications are [the Raiders] are going to make Mendoza sit.”
Kirk Cousins Expected to Win Raiders Quarterback Job; Fernando Mendoza to Sit
This report shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, as Kirk Cousins is one of the better bridge quarterbacks out there and wouldn’t have signed with the Raiders if he didn’t have a realistic chance to play. Cousins tore his Achilles in 2023 with the Minnesota Vikings, signed with the Atlanta Falcons, and quickly lost the starting job to 2024 first-round pick Michael Penix. While he began the 2025 season on the bench, Cousins ultimately made eight starts for the Falcons after Penix tore his ACL. The veteran played reasonably well in the back half of the season, completing 61.7% of his passes for 1,721 yards, 10 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a 76.0 PFF grade, the 16th-best mark in the league.
Kirk Cousins is not the quarterback he once was, but he’s still a top-32 passer and is more than capable of keeping this ship afloat while Fernando Mendoza adjusts to the NFL game. The Raiders won’t win a Super Bowl with Cousins under center, but they probably couldn’t do that even if they had an elite quarterback. This roster has quite a few holes, and head coach Klint Kubiak is in the early stages of rebuilding this team in his image. At this stage in the rebuild, it’s best for Cousins to start, so long as he can keep the team somewhat competitive.
Best-Laid Plans
Of course, there is a long time between now and the start of the regular season. While the Raiders might want Kirk Cousins to be their starting quarterback, Mendoza could win the job with a strong training camp. Teams don’t keep rookie quarterbacks on the bench as much as they used to, as guys like Caleb Williams and Cam Ward had no real competition for the starting job when drafted. The closest recent comparison is New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who began his career behind veteran journeyman Jacoby Brissett.
Former head coach Jerod Mayo made it clear that Brissett would start while Maye adjusted to the league. This plan lasted all of four games, as Maye clearly outplayed the veteran in the preseason and eventually became too good to keep on the bench. History could repeat itself here, as Mendoza has the talent to outplay Cousins throughout the offseason and give the Raiders no choice but to make a switch at the quarterback position.
