Though the Las Vegas Raiders used the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the plan all offseason was to start Kirk Cousins. They believe the best plan of action for the quarterback was to slowly bring him along. However, last week was a bit of a different narrative out in Foxborough against the New England Patriots.
In the first four games of the season, nobody was calling for Mendoza to play. Cousins has been very good for the majority of the season and is second in the NFL with 12 touchdown passes. However, the Raiders lost 45-17 to the Patriots in Week 5.
During the blowout loss, the Raiders let Mendoza play for the last drive of the game. The rookie looked solid (going 6/8 for 48 yards), which has led to many suggestions that he should start against the Buffalo Bills in Week 6 and for the rest of the season.
Who is starting for the Raiders against the Bills?
Mendoza is the future at quarterback for the Raiders, but it looks like he's going to have to wait. With Cousins playing well, the team isn't ready to make that move quite yet, according to head coach Klint Kubiak.
“Kirk is the starter, but if Fernando’s number is called, we have confidence in him,” Kubiak told reporters on Monday.
The Bills have known that Cousins is the starter, so they haven't had to prepare for Mendoza. The only way he's going to play is if the Raiders get blown out again.
That's certainly on the table, but the game is in Las Vegas, so the Raiders should be more competitive than they were against the Patriots. For the Bills, they can prepare for a quarterback in Cousins who isn't going to be a threat to make plays with his feet.
At the same time, Cousins isn't afraid to let the ball rip and with Buffalo's secondary being amongst the worst in the league up to this point, that will be a key factor for this game.
The veteran has shown that he can still push the ball down the field, so that's something to take into account. Mendoza's time will come, but Buffalo will be up against the savvy veteran in Week 6.
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