Oddly enough, the Las Vegas Raiders now have a quarterback who is essentially universally liked. Fernando Mendoza captured the hearts of every football fan during his National Title run at Indiana, and he even extended his reach outside the sports world. He’s just a joy to watch play and hear talk.

Before the 2026 NFL Draft began, one would have been hard-pressed to find someone who didn’t just love Mendoza. Sure, his on-field ability can draw criticism from some, but no detractors have made themselves known for the kind of person that Mendoza is and what he represents.

So Raider Nation can imagine just how difficult this all is and will continue to be for fans of rival AFC West teams. Yes, Las Vegas is still considered the “little brother” to their divisional counterparts, but the Mendoza selection and his first comments already have one Chargers writer hot under the collar.

Chargers writer gives Fernando Mendoza and Las Vegas Raiders some bulletin board material

As fans know, Mendoza is a passionate, honest and authentic person. When he was asked on Thursday, just minutes after becoming the No. 1 overall pick, what this all meant to him and how excited he was to become a Raider, he said the following:

“The last five months have been a blessing by God and I can’t thank him enough,” Mendoza said. “I look forward to proving it and earning it every single day … what a great organization, great legacy, so many great teammates and coaches I’m looking forward to.”

And apparently, that struck a chord with Jason Reed of Bolt Beat, FanSided’s dedicated Los Angeles Chargers site. He immediately wrote an article about how Mendoza is “lying” about the Raiders being a great organization, and that this time is no different for Las Vegas.

“As lovable as Mendoza was at Indiana, he is now an enemy for Chargers fans. No team in the AFC West is as despised as the Raiders, and it won’t take much for Chargers fans to start disliking Mendoza rather quickly. 

“In fact, if we want to be really critical, we can point out how Mendoza is already lying about the team that drafted him and Chargers fans can spot it from a mile away. During his first interview as a member of the Raiders, Mendoza said something that will make Chargers fans belly laugh: the Raiders are great.”

Of course, Raiders fans can already see that the hatred is forced, simply because he’s now wearing The Shield. And while that is understandable to an extent, it’s not like Las Vegas fans spend a whole lot of time hating the ringless Chargers, who, although better lately, have one playoff win since 2014.

Reed did acknowledge that this piece was tongue-in-cheek, but he stood by his decree that the Raiders are a lowly franchise based on how the last two decades have gone. Of course, he leaves out the fact that the Chargers have actually never been great.

“Look, this is obviously a tongue-in-cheek dissection of Mendoza’s first comments as a Raider. Of course he is going to say his new team is great. He’s not going to go out there and point out the laundry list of bad history the Raiders have over the last two decades.

“He’s not Eli Manning. He’s not going to force himself to get traded out of the No. 1 overall pick. As hilarious as that would have been, Mendoza is too good of a guy to pull a move like that. 

“That being said, Mendoza will soon learn something that Chargers fans can tell him firsthand: the Raiders aren’t great. Yes, they have a great history, but nobody under the age of 45 was sentient for any of their Super Bowl wins. Nobody under the age of 25 was sentient for their last playoff win.”

The question I would ask Jason is: How old were Chargers fans the last time they won a Super Bowl? Heck, the last time they’ve even been to a Super Bowl? As bad as the Raiders have been in recent memory, they’ve still played for a Lombardi Trophy more recently than the Chargers have.

To finish off his piece, Reed conceded that if Las Vegas ever returns to greatness, it will be because of Mendoza. But he isn’t buying that just yet.

“Mendoza obviously believes everything he said. He thinks the Raiders are great, because, well, of course he does. But until we actually see it with our own eyes, Chargers fans know that’s all just lip service.”

This will be quite a receipt for Raiders fans to keep over the coming years. I understand their skepticism of a highly-drafted quarterback turning a team into a perennial contender, because Chargers fans have watched Justin Herbert flop in the playoffs at every turn.

And their hatred of the Raiders is also born of the fact that the city they play in will always belong to the Silver and Black. Being the third-most popular team in your hometown isn’t a good feeling, and it’ll be even worse when Mendoza becomes exactly who they are so afraid of him being.

(PSA: Do not direct any hate to Jason Reed. He is a great person and writer just doing his job)

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