Mendoza to Start This Week Vs The Seahawks

[Attyla]

You heard it here first.

Time for the future.

[SuperRaider]

Haunting is the only word for it that I can think of.

It was also the start of the "Madness of King Al" his destructive feud with Allen (and lets be honest it was Al's fault) led to the eventually implosion of the franchise. There were more than just that obviously, but sure didn't help.


Same.

Was told by someone that was in the sport media but lower down the ladder; like proof reader or something like that…that Marcus went out with Al Davis niece and he treat her real bad or something like that; cannot remember the whole story but something happened that was not football related; Marcus had a reputation with the ladies and I think he treated someone real bad in which Al Davis personally knew…..somebody should write a book on what really happened between Al and Marcus…Al Davis did have a brother named Jerry who had two daughters and his brother did work with Al in the raiders organisation; so it could be connected.

[LayneStaley]

I actually don’t think Mendoza will look bad, pass blocking really isn’t the issue. If he gets the ball out quick enough I think he’s capable of having a pretty serviceable game. I’m looking forward to the adjustments he makes after the bye week. A solid month of stellar qb play to end the season would be a successful season.

[RI RAIDER]

He is ready. I can feel it. Be a sponge (absorb the good and the bad) Fernando and remember that you will have a better line, better WR's, and more experience when the season starts next year. We have waited a long f[raiders_icon]cking time for this team and starting in September, the wait will be over (we will at least be respectable). Props to young fans who have stuck with this disaster of a franchise.

[Reno Hightower]

f[raiders_icon]ck it. I am going all in and starting Fernando in one of my fantasy leagues this Sunday. Having an off year in that one maybe he can make something happen.

I haven't had a Raiders QB as my starter since Gannon in 02.

[mstrbass2000]

f[raiders_icon]ck it. I am going all in and starting Fernando in one of my fantasy leagues this Sunday. Having an off year in that one maybe he can make something happen.

I haven't had a Raiders QB as my starter since Gannon in 02.

dont do it ...i dont see him putting up more then 15 points

[haji81872]

dont do it ...i dont see him putting up more then 15 points

Gotta risk it for the biscuit.

[DeathStar24]

f[raiders_icon]ck it. I am going all in and starting Fernando in one of my fantasy leagues this Sunday. Having an off year in that one maybe he can make something happen.

I haven't had a Raiders QB as my starter since Gannon in 02.

On the flip side I have the Seahawks defense going. But to be fair I drafted them.

[Oaktownonly]

The receivers are going to need to make adjustments also. The ball is going to get to them a hell of a lot quicker than before. So when they're coming out of their routes to look for the ball, expect it to be almost to you already.

[NoThanksSir]

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It'll be real interesting to see if Mendoza can move the needle in his first start. If he can make it through his progressions and find the open guy, we might find that our WRs aren't as bad as we thought.

[chucker]

This is from Albert Breer's story on the Cousins trade:

With less than a week left until the NFL trade deadline, Kirk Cousins was second in the NFL in touchdown passes last week, third in yards and seventh in passer rating. The Raiders were 4–4, coming off their first win in over a month. No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza’s development was accelerating. The whole situation was complicated.

So the 15-year vet called his agent, Mike McCartney, to ask, “Am I getting traded?”

McCartney said it was possible, but unlikely. Cousins said he wanted to make it clear that he wasn’t looking to be traded. He liked playing for Klint Kubiak, who he’d been with in Minnesota from 2019 to ’21. He liked the organization and being a team leader in a ground-up program build. He added that he knew Mendoza would get a call eventually because, he said to McCartney, he’s ready.

The key words are the last two, Cousins' saying that Mendoza is ready.

For the time being, our floor at QB just got lower, and our ceiling just got higher.

[NoThanksSir]

Yea I think Mendoza played a big part in the trade going down. Kubiak said they had a discussion and that ultimately it was Kirk's decision to stay. I think the discussion was essentially, we're going with Mendoza after the bye. We think he's ready, you know he's ready. Do you want to be his tutor from the sidelines or finish out the rest of the year on the field in Minnesota?

The locker room too seems completely fine with the decision, judging by Tucker's comments. I think Mendoza is further along than folks realize. Everyone inside of the building seems to think he's ready, and now we know Cousins did too.

[The Joe Joe]

Just traded for Bowers! Let's go!

[chucker]

Excerpt from story on Mendoza :

The biggest adjustment will be in the starters adjusting to the cadence and the differences in how Mendoza communicates as opposed to Cousins.

But that hasn’t been an issue since Mendoza arrived. Teammates have praised his ability to communicate. He has also demonstrated a level of tenacity that may surprise those who only know him from television interviews and commercials.

“Outside of football, he’s friendly and kind. I know he seems kind of quirky,” Miller said. “But on the field, he commands the huddle. He speaks with volume. And if we have to make a correction, he’s (forceful). ‘Bring it back. Let’s do it again.’ He’s really growing into that role. But he’s definitely different than what you might think watching from afar.

“We have trust in Fernando.”

That comes from what they have seen from him since he arrived in April as the No. 1 pick in the draft off an undefeated Heisman Trophy-winning season that made him a global superstar.

Yet that’s not who his new teammates met.

“You would think he was undrafted by the way he works,” wide receiver Tre Tucker said. “He’s super humble and he just grinds every day. I’m excited to see him out there.”

Tucker and Mendoza became fast friends. They greet each other with jokes or playful trash talk each morning and sit next to one another in team meetings.

Now they will get to move that connection onto the field, even if it comes at the expense of losing a teammate Tucker also grew close with during the year.

“We all knew Fernando’s moment would come at some point, but we lost a leader in Kirk,” Tucker said. “We have so much respect for him, and he left this team in a really good spot. Now he’s going to go (to Minnesota) and do his thing. It’s bittersweet. We’re sad to see him go, but excited to see what Fernando does with the opportunity.”

Tucker, who can’t remember Mendoza ever having a bad day, said it’s his mission to make sure Mendoza has every chance to succeed.

“We know he’s going to play his heart out so we want to make plays for him,” Tucker said. “It’s my mentality to run through a wall for him.”

It’s the same feeling most of the locker room had for Cousins.

“We’re going to miss Kirk. He was a great leader in this locker room,” said center Tyler Linderbaum, who was surprised by the move. “It happened and we’ve got to be ready to go on Sunday. Bummed it happened, but excited for the future and what we can build off this. We’re excited. He’s excited. We’re ready.

“It’s time to rally around Fernando.”

[Attyla]

All the things we saw in his college game are about to be amplified. His intelligence and his work ethic are what is going to separate him from recent high QB picks.

[Lecomp]

What gets me is how genuine other players seem to speak of the guy. There's a qb who genuinely has the respect of a locker room that looks like they'll run through walls for the kid and want him to succeed at every level..

Let's f[raiders_icon]cking go. Stoked for Sunday.