While the fanbase has already written in pen that Fernando Mendoza will be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders’ leadership tandem of Klint Kubiak and John Spytek has expressed how much work still remains to be done in the pre-draft process.
Kubiak, in particular, is quite unfamiliar with Mendoza, as his Seattle Seahawks team was making a run to the Super Bowl. They weren’t likely to be looking at the draft in October like those in Las Vegas and Raider Nation were.
But the 2026 NFL scouting combine presented an opportunity for the Silver and Black’s new-look brass to meet with the young Indiana prospect, and according to Mendoza himself, he and the Raiders’ decision-makers seemingly hit it off in Indianapolis.
Mendoza took the podium for his media availability early on Friday morning, and he was hounded by a mob of reporters. Of course, he was asked whether or not he had met with the Raiders, and Mendoza confirmed that he had. And that he loved it.
“I was lucky enough to have a formal interview with the Las Vegas Raiders,” Mendoza said. “It was a fantastic interview. Coaching staff was in there, we went over some of my previous plays, we go over some plays on the board. I thought it was a great meeting.”
Now, some fans may not be super convinced by this. After all, Mendoza is seemingly enthusiastic and positive about everything that he comes across. But it means more that Las Vegas had such a big contingent in the room, and that they were already going over some plays with him.
Typically, the first meeting between a player and a team is more informal or designed for the two parties to get to know one another. But it seems like the Raiders just jumped right in, and Mendoza was a huge fan.
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When asked about the tandem of Spytek and Kubiak, Mendoza seemingly resonated with how the duo approaches the game of football. It sounds like, even beyond the Raiders’ need for a quarterback, they could be a match made in heaven.
“They’re very football savvy, which is great to see. They taught me a play, and they had their whole progression of how they teach the quarterbacks to play. It was very similar to how my Indiana progression was,” Mendoza told reporters. “(Coach Kubiak) is a very type-A guy. They had all the details of each play: What to do if you get a problem with each play, which drop, what’s your progression, and that’s something that I really enjoy.”
And, of course, there is the Tom Brady of it all. Brady was Mendoza’s quarterback idol growing up, and Spytek confirmed earlier this week that Brady would be a great resource for any young signal-caller that comes through Las Vegas. Mendoza had an awesome response when asked about this:
“Yeah, I mean, who hasn’t admired Tom Brady?” Mendoza asked. “More Super Bowl rings than anybody. So that opportunity would be fantastic. Tom Brady, I believe, is the greatest quarterback of all time by a wide margin, and being able to have the opportunity to be mentored by him, it would mean so much. And especially to learn, and I’m all about learning. So, from Day 1, I gotta learn a lot. It’s gonna be a long journey. And to have — potentially — a mentor like that, would be pretty impressive and pretty meaningful.”
By all accounts, the Raiders and Mendoza absolutely hit it off in their first formal interaction. Anyone doubting that Las Vegas will take Mendoza with the first pick has their head in the sand at this point, and if this meeting doesn’t further convince that person, they’ve just buried it further.
