The Las Vegas Raiders haven't even taken the field for training camp, but rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza is already leaving his mark. The No. 1 overall pick and reigning Heisman Trophy winner isn't just learning the playbook—he's questioning it.
Offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko revealed on the team's Upon Further Review podcast that Mendoza's relentless curiosity is forcing him to reconsider aspects of his own scheme. “He’s somebody that wants to know the whys of everything, the story behind everything,” Janocko said. “What we’re calling, but why are we calling it? He’s really just a sponge that wants to know everything.”
That inquisitive nature has already led Janocko to dig deeper into his own philosophies. “He’s asking questions that you might not have thought about in a couple of years,” the coordinator added. “It also makes you evaluate everything. I know we’ve had some success doing it one way, but we could do it another way and be even better.”
Mendoza, who led Indiana to a national championship, will battle veteran Kirk Cousins for the starting job this summer under new head coach Klint Kubiak. The Raiders are rebuilding an offense that ranked dead last in both yards and points in 2025 under Pete Carroll. Kubiak, hired away from Seattle, brought Janocko with him after the latter served as the Seahawks' quarterbacks coach.
The coaching staff is tailoring the attack around weapons like running back Ashton Jeanty and tight end Brock Bowers. But the biggest variable is Mendoza, whose hunger for knowledge is already accelerating the process. Janocko noted that the rookie's questions are helping shape the entire offensive identity. “There’s some parts that we’re still figuring out, that we’re feeling out, that we are building together,” he said.
Mendoza's approach echoes the work ethic he showed when he skipped a White House visit to prove himself at OTAs earlier this spring. That dedication has impressed coaches and teammates alike, and it's already driving real change in the meeting room.
“It all comes down to, how can we support Klint in his role as the play-caller? How can we build around our players?” Janocko said. “And then, what is each individual person’s role in fulfilling that? That’s something that none of us take lightly – that we all are involved, we all want to pull our weight, and that we build something that we put the players in the best situation to be successful.”
The Raiders are clearly building around Mendoza, even as the competition with Cousins unfolds. If the rookie's questions are any indication, the offense that takes the field in September may look very different from what Janocko originally drew up. And that might be exactly what Las Vegas needs.
