Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas) — Thursday only marked the unofficial start of the Fernando Mendoza era in Las Vegas, but he gave the Raiders plenty of reason for hope in his preseason debut.
The Raiders’ rookie quarterback and the No. 1 overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft completed 10 of 16 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown with zero turnovers in the team’s 27-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday. Mendoza played four drives, getting his first taste of NFL action after Kirk Cousins got the start at quarterback for Las Vegas.
Here are my three takeaways from Mendoza’s preseason debut, which also featured the debut of Cardinals rookie running back Jeremiyah Love, who was the third overall pick in the draft.
1. Can Raiders Keep Mendoza On Bench For Long?
Cousins got the start in Thursday’s game and did as well as anyone could’ve asked. The veteran completed 5 of 6 passes for 50 yards, throwing a touchdown pass in his only drive of the game.
But all of the excitement was waiting for Mendoza, who won the Heisman Trophy and led Indiana to a national title last year. His first drive wasn’t great, converting a third-and-8 pass to wide receiver Jack Bech before the drive reached a halt due to a holding penalty by a backup offensive lineman.
However, Mendoza’s second drive was enough to get Raiders fans excited. He threaded a pass between two defenders to Malik Benson for a 19-yard gain to get the drive going. Then, after another Raiders rookie, running back Mike Washington, broke loose for a 53-yard run, Mendoza made sure Las Vegas found the end zone. He took a sack on first-and-goal, but avoided another to help set up a third-and-goal at the 6-yard line. Mendoza came through on that play, completing a quick slant to Bech for a touchdown and the highlight of his preseason debut.
That was the only time the Raiders put up points when Mendoza was on the field, although the team got into field goal range in his final drive of the night. Still, that might have been enough, though, to make you wonder how long Las Vegas will keep him on the bench behind Cousins, as Mendoza played into the fourth quarter. Las Vegas head coach Klint Kubiak reiterated after Thursday’s game that the starting job was Cousins’ “to lose.”
Kubiak’s comment won’t stop Raiders fans from getting excited about Mendoza, though. Ahead of Thursday’s game, there was a group of fans I saw holding a flag with Mendoza’s face wearing an eyepatch in place of the Raiders’ logo.
2. Raiders Offense Looks Much Improved
A rare Thursday home kickoff allowed Raiders’ minority owner Tom Brady to watch the game in person, as he’s usually busy calling games for FOX Sports when the team’s playing. And in his appearance, Brady got to see an upgraded Las Vegas offense.
It was a solid offensive debut for Kubiak, who came to Las Vegas after helping the Seattle Seahawks win the Super Bowl as their offensive coordinator this past season. His team put up 317 yards of total offense on Thursday.
And you can’t take much from a preseason opener, but Las Vegas’ offensive line should be much better in 2026 after dealing with a slew of injuries last season. Center Tyler Linderbaum got one of the biggest deals in free agency and upgrades the middle, and having tackle Kolton Miller healthy helps the pass protection. Even with emerging running back Ashton Jeanty, the Raiders were last in the NFL in rushing yards per game and yards per carry, but that won’t be the case in 2026.
It was the Raiders’ offensive depth, though, that showed out (outside of Mendoza and Cousins) on Thursday. Bech, who the Raiders took in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, had three receptions, including the touchdown grab. Tight end Michael Mayer, a second-round pick in 2023, caught Cousins’ touchdown pass.
3. Love At First Glance?
Mendoza wasn’t the only marquee rookie making his preseason debut Thursday, as Jeremiyah Love saw his first NFL action and impressed. The Cardinals running back had a spin move to the left on third-and-short in the red zone to set up one touchdown, and hurdled through the Raiders’ defense for a 15-yard gain just before halftime, providing one of the highlights of the night in the NFL. Love finished Thursday’s game with 58 yards on 11 carries in the first half.
It’s easy to write off the Cardinals and Raiders as last-place teams in insanely difficult divisions, but both have talented young running backs and new offensive-minded head coaches in Kubiak and Arizona’s Mike LaFleur, so there’s reason for measured optimism. Arizona’s Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew went a combined 15 of 15 for 123 yards in the first half, with touchdown passes on all three drives.
