Getty
(Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek spoke with the media on Feb. 24. While not mentioning former Indiana Hoosiers QB Fernando Mendoza by name, he did give a general reference to potentially having a rookie signal-caller next season.
Every draft expert speculates that the Silver and Black will take Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick. As a result, the Raiders will need to prepare for a rookie QB and do everything they can to develop him into a franchise quarterback.
Spytek noted what’s needed to ensure that a rookie QB like Mendoza, should they go this route, has success in the NFL.
“I think you’ve got to support them in many different ways,” Spytek said (h/t Raider Nation Radio). “To think that you’re just going to take a young quarterback anywhere and just start them Week 1 and it’s going to go great is naive, and you’re not doing that kid any favors at all. I think probably more organizations fail those kids than those kids fail the organizations.
“So, whoever we got at the quarterback spot, it takes the whole building to support them because they have such a hard job. We’ve got to be patient with young players in general. I think we saw that with some. Offensive line, it’s a hard job to come in and start as a rookie. Those guys had to earn the chance to go play football. We’ve got to support those guys and build them up and develop them.”
Raiders Could Have Clutch QB in Fernando Mendoza
Meanwhile, FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt believes that if the Raiders were to select Mendoza, they’d be receiving a player who isn’t shy in stepping up in the most tense situations of a game.
“When you look at Mendoza and his best performances and his most clutch performances and the most important parts of the season, what was he doing? Making huge throws from the pocket,” Klatt said during a Feb. 24 appearance on “The Herd.” “Third downs, fourth downs, on the road: Iowa, Oregon, Penn State, Big Ten Championship Game, Ohio State, Natty, Miami.
“What was he doing? Late in the game, late in the down sequence, making throws from the pocket. I think he’s accurate. Reminds me a little bit of Michael Penix Jr. and his accuracy, in the vein of being a leverage thrower.”
Fernando Mendoza Gets Praise Over Throwing Ability
Moreover, Klatt went into detail regarding Mendoza’s ability to throw the football, which he believes will translate over to the NFL.
“The best quarterbacks never throw 50-50 balls,“ Klatt added. “They’re always putting the percentage in the wide receiver’s advantage because of the leverage they throw with from a ball-position and ball-placement standpoint. Well, he does that. Every time he throws a ball outside to Charlie Becker, or Elijah Sarratt, or Omar Cooper Jr., he’s giving them the advantage because it’s away from the defender, whether it’s down the field, in the middle, or on the sideline.
“He does that. And for those two reasons, owning it from the pocket in big moments and being an anticipatory leverage thrower, I think that this guy is, I don’t want to say can’t miss, but man, I think he’s absolutely going to succeed in the National Football League.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
More Heavy on Raiders
Loading more stories