The Las Vegas Raiders just finished up Mandatory Minicamp, and are now gearing up for training camp.
Jun 9, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko (left) talks with quarterbacks Fernando Mendoza (15) and Kirk Cousins (8) during minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Las Vegas Raiders just finished up mandatory minicamp and now have a break before training camp. The last few months have been nothing but rookie minicamp, OTAs, and mandatory minicamp. Now there’s a break before training camp kicks off.
And, it’s a much-needed break, because these players just put in a ton of work. And many of them are already showing improvement. Of course, the most important one, and the one fans want to hear about the most, has to be Fernando Mendoza. He’s the heir to the throne as the franchise quarterback. But he’s starting from the bottom and working to earn that title. He’s already getting better.
Raiders rookie QB Fernando Mendoza says he’s already improved his game
“Well, I think there’s always a transition, especially from the college level to the NFL level, and it’s having those positive stressors and that growing period, and there’s going to be some growing pains,” Mendoza told reporters this week.
“And luckily I feel confident that I’m able to see the field well, and that my growing pains are coming from, ‘Hey, I’ve got to time up my footwork a little better with the routes,’ and intricacies here and there, and I’m really working hard with coaching staff who’s pushing me and have done a phenomenal job of relaying and communicating the information needed, and it’s up to me to take full advantage of that, and I feel like I’ve been growing every day from the first day of OTAs, then today in minicamp, I feel like I’m leaps and bounds ahead of where I was.”
Fernando Mendoza on his development 7 weeks into his NFL tenure:
“I feel like I’ve been growing every day from the first day of OTAs to today and mini camp. I feel like I’m leaps and bounds ahead of where I was.”
— Sam Warren (@samwarren83) June 9, 2026
One of the biggest things that people held against Mendoza coming out of college was that he didn’t play from under center very often. This was seen as a bad thing because the Raiders are expected to do that a lot under Klint Kubiak. And playing from under center just adds an unexpected variable to the equation that the defense has to try to guess.
We know that Mendoza went to work on that almost immediately. We know that the Raiders immediately got him running bootleg plays. We also know that Mendoza has probably done a million under-center reps by now. And, he probably thinks that’s not enough. So, fans should be excited, especially to see more of him in training camp very soon.
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