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Raiders OC Andrew Janocko: Fernando Mendoza's questions about offense have us evaluating everything
May 19, 2026Josh AlperPro Football Talk
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When the Raiders signed Kirk Cousins as a free agent, they added a veteran quarterback with experience playing for head coach Klint Kubiak and offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko from their time in Minnesota. Fernando Mendoza does not share that background. The first overall pick has been getting to know the offense over the course of the offseason and Janocko said that the fresh eyes have been beneficial to all involved. Janocko called Mendoza "a sponge" who "wants to know the whys of everything, the story behind everything" that the team is doing. "He's asking questions that you might not have thought about in a couple of years ," Janocko said, via the team's website. "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.'" It remains to be seen if Cousins or Mendoza is on the field against the Dolphins in Week 1, but Mendoza is the long-term answer for the franchise and anything he does now to create a fit for himself in the offense will pay dividends for the Raiders whenever he's under center.