With the number one overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders are expected to pick the Heisman-winning quarterback, Fernando Mendoza. However, Tom Brady and GM John Spytek, who are spearheading the overhaul for Las Vegas, have been given a warning about it by Adam Schefter.
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This year’s draft class is going to be interesting since there’s no clear-cut number one pick like in the last few seasons. Everyone expects Mendoza to be picked by Vegas, but they could certainly zig when everyone expects a zag and select Dante Moore instead.
Schefter feels the Raiders should do their homework on all QB prospects before deciding on their target. After all, they’ve struggled to get the position sorted for three seasons now.
While Brady seems to be in charge, let us not forget that not every former QB knows what to look for in a quarterback, not even the GOAT. He, after all, blundered by picking Geno Smith last year.
“Just because you’re the greatest quarterback of all-time, doesn’t mean that you have extensive knowledge at [picking a] quarterback. Last year, the Raiders traded for Geno Smith, and they didn’t go after Sam Darnold,” Schefter pointed out on the Stephen A Smith Show.
“I love John Elway. When John Elway was in Denver, he drafted Paxton Lynch and Brock Osweiler,” added the NFL insider.
The two picks Schefter mentioned were among the worst in Denver’s franchise history, made by the greatest QB in the franchise’s history. Lynch was selected 26th overall in the first round of the 2016 draft. However, he started only five games across two seasons.
Osweiler, on the other hand, was drafted in the second round by Elway in 2012. He spent almost his entire tenure as Peyton Manning’s backup.
Schefter was essentially warning the Raiders and Brady to get the pick right. And almost everyone agrees that QB is the position they need most. So, they need to be right between Moore and Mendoza.
We still have a long time before the Draft in April. So the Raiders have enough time to approach this objectively. However, Mendoza feels like a natural pick among an average draft class.
Moore is a great prospect out of Oregon, too. However, he is more raw than Mendoza and should be viewed as a ceiling pick with the potential to be a high-end QB one day. Meanwhile, Mendoza has shown poise, toughness, and accuracy that will work at the next level immediately. He’s the safe pick, and could be the perfect player to stabilize the Raiders’ rudderless ship.
It’s a great point that Schefter made, though. Just because Mendoza looks like the best player on the surface doesn’t mean that he is. That’s why Brady and his team will need to get into the weeds when it comes to scouting this offseason. They have to get this pick right and not end up with another JaMarcus Russell situation on their hands. Raiders fans are counting on it.
