The Las Vegas Raiders aren’t hiding their plan for the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. By signing veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins to a guaranteed deal on Thursday, the franchise laid out a red carpet for presumptive top pick Fernando Mendoza. The 37-year-old Cousins reunites with new Las Vegas head coach Klint Kubiak, creating an ideal bridge for a rookie who needs time to adjust to the professional game.
Las Vegas has spent years searching for stability at the sport’s most important position. Now, the Raiders finally have a roadmap that makes sense. They aren’t throwing a rookie to the wolves behind an offensive line learning a new scheme.
Kirk Cousins Will Help Fernando Mendoza Adjust Under Center
Mendoza put up staggering numbers during his collegiate career. He threw 1,008 passes across his time at California and Indiana, culminating in a Heisman Trophy and a pristine 16-0 national championship run with the Hoosiers last season.
He completed 72% of his passes in 2025, operating a highly efficient, shotgun-heavy spread offense that relied on run-pass options and quick game. He finished second on PFSN’s CFB QB Impact Metrics.
But the scheme he operated in Bloomington is vastly different from what Kubiak is installing in Las Vegas. Kubiak, deeply rooted in the Shanahan offensive tree, demands his quarterbacks operate heavily from under center.
This shifts the entire paradigm for a young passer. It changes footwork, eye level, and processing speed. The quarterback has to turn his back to the defense on play-action fakes before snapping his head around to locate moving targets.
ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky laid out the stark contrast in styles, stressing why the veteran signing is vital for Las Vegas.
“If you just look at Klint Kubiak, since 2021, this is a big deal, okay? Over half of his team’s snaps have been from underneath center,” Orlovsky said. “And if you look at who Fernando Mendoza was in college, that’s a shocking number. Over 1,000 pass attempts, only five of them were from under center.”
Mendoza isn’t blind to the challenge. Following his throwing session at Indiana’s pro day on Wednesday, the 22-year-old acknowledged the specific hurdles waiting for him on Sundays. He noted that the hash marks are more condensed and the game is faster.
“I know at the next level, there’s going to be a lot more snaps under center and that’s a big adjustment,” Mendoza told reporters. “I need to get used to that and just the nature of the game.”
The Raiders know the Kubiak system isn’t going anywhere. The head coach watched his father, Gary Kubiak, master this exact stylistic approach for decades. He isn’t going to scrap his core philosophy to accommodate a rookie’s college habits. Mendoza has to adapt to the scheme, not the other way around.
Why Cousins Buys the Raiders Time
This is exactly why the Cousins signing is a masterstroke for general manager John Spytek. Cousins knows this system intimately. He worked under Kubiak in Minnesota, a stretch that included highly efficient offensive production and a Pro Bowl nod in 2021.
Entering his 15th NFL season with 44,700 career passing yards, Cousins isn’t here to be the face of the franchise for the next decade. He’s here to run the offense smoothly right now.
“It’s probably the best thing that the Raiders could have done for Mendoza, outside of maybe the addition of a dynamic playmaker on the outside,” Orlovsky said. “Number one, experienced quarterback that you don’t have to rush Mendoza. Two, he knows this offense inside and out, and I think that’s probably going to be the biggest hurdle for Fernando Mendoza once he gets to the NFL.”
Cousins doesn’t need to win a Super Bowl for Las Vegas. He just needs to keep the offense functional and on schedule while Mendoza masters the nuances of professional quarterbacking.
The veteran serves as a live-action tutor. Mendoza can watch Cousins handle the pre-snap motion, execute the under-center drops, and navigate the condensed pockets.
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The dynamic demands the young passer get entirely comfortable before taking the reins. It removes the panic from the developmental process.
If Mendoza isn’t ready for the bright lights in Week 1, the Raiders won’t be forced into a desperate situation. Las Vegas can let its veteran take the early-season hits while the rookie perfects his craft in practice.