Fernando Mendoza may be the first overall pick in this year’s draft, but the Raiders quarterback still has to earn the room before he ever fully owns it. That’s the part Maxx Crosby zeroed in on when Mendoza joined his The Rush podcast, and the message from the veteran edge rusher was simple: don’t fake the leadership stuff.
Crosby asked Mendoza about his relationship with Kirk Cousins, who signed with the Raiders as a free agent and is the other option to start at quarterback in Week 1. Mendoza said Cousins has been helpful in passing along lessons from his stops with Washington, Minnesota and Atlanta, and one of the biggest takeaways has been about staying true to himself if he wants older teammates to trust him.
Crosby said that advice was “spot on.”
“If you’re not genuine, guys pick up on that real quick,” Crosby said. “College is different.
You’re growing as a man, you’re trying to figure out who you are and evolve as a leader, and you’re still going to school. You’re just trying to figure out life and how to operate.
But once you get to the league, everyone’s grown men. Dudes have full families.
They have different types of motivations, and everyone’s coming from a different walk of life. So being genuine, you’ll never go wrong.
And trust me, I’m a little weird too. I do a lot of s-t.
I’m not saying you’re weird, but I’m off the wall sometimes, and I’ll say some s-t.”
Crosby also said players should never be “over the top trying to prove” they can lead, because real leaders just handle it naturally.
Mendoza’s next steps will come at training camp, where the Raiders will be watching to see how he carries himself and whether teammates buy in once he does take the reins.
In Other News...
Raiders Just Made A Costly Bet On Their Pass Rush
The Raiders went into the move for Kwity Paye looking to add more juice to a pass rush that has needed it, and on paper the former Colts defender brings some useful traits. He has been a sturdy run defender and has shown enough disruption to keep evaluators interested, even if his NFL rsum has never quite matched the kind of edge production teams usually chase when they make this sort of investment.
Still, the fit comes with a familiar question for Las Vegas: how much pass-rush upside is really there if the sacks have never climbed into elite territory? Payes career has trended more toward steady than explosive, and the Raiders are banking on a player whose value has to come from more than just finishing plays in the backfield. For a defense trying to close the gap, that is a gamble worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Fernando Mendoza Just Set The Standard For His Raiders Camp
Fernando Mendozas first Raiders camp has been less about flash and more about structure, with the rookie quarterback working through a clear developmental path laid out by the coaching staff. He is trying to carve out playing time behind Kirk Cousins and Aidan OConnell, but the bigger story right now is how the team wants to build him up, with training camp and preseason serving as checkpoints rather than a race to the top of the depth chart.
Mendoza has kept the focus on what the staff expects from him and on earning trust along the way, which fits the way the Raiders are handling his progression. For now, the question is not just whether he can make a push in the quarterback battle, but whether he can show enough growth over the next stretch to make his long-term outlook matter more than any immediate role. [Read more 🡒]