{"id":860679,"date":"2026-04-08T10:26:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T10:26:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/860679\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T10:26:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T10:26:51","slug":"raiders-get-significant-bang-for-their-buck-with-cousins-signing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/860679\/","title":{"rendered":"Raiders Get Significant Bang for Their Buck with Cousins Signing"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Las Vegas Raiders have begun solidifying their depth at multiple position groups. <\/p>\n

\"Raider\"<\/p>\n

Dec 29, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) celebrates after a victory over the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
\n | Brett Davis-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\"\"Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow<\/a>Raiders’ Roster Rollout<\/p>\n

Las Vegas<\/a> has made more significant signings this offseason, than the addition of Kirk Cousins. Yet, adding Cousins was as much a part of the Raiders’ offseason plans as all of the other changes that have been made. By adding Cousins, the Raiders buy more time for Fernando Mendoza. <\/p>\n

The Raiders<\/a> will also get a quarterback who has started plenty of games around the league. It would not be unreasonable to see Cousins play for much of the first half of the season, if not more, depending on how hard wins are to come by for the Raiders early on. <\/p>\n

\"Raiders\"<\/p>\n

Jan 4, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) throws a pass during the game against the New Orleans Saints during the second half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Still, whether the Raiders begin the season winning or losing, they would have a decision to make. If Cousins leads them to wins early on, it would make little sense to bench him. If the Raiders are losing early on, throwing a rookie quarterback on the field does not make much sense either. <\/p>\n

Cousins gives the Raiders a quarterback who is more than familiar with Kubiak. If the Raiders have a productive offseason training program, he could very well lead the Raiders to wins, buying Mendoza even more time to quietly develop in the background. That would be ideal for Mendoza. <\/p>\n

\"Raider\"<\/p>\n

Fernando Mendoza participates in Indiana University’s Pro Day at Mellencamp Pavilion on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. | Rich Janzaruk\/Herald-Times \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n

League insider Tom Pelissero noted that Cousins had some of the best seasons of his career with Kubiak and Janocko when all three were previously with the Minnesota Vikings. Cousins’ arrival to Las Vegas should be no surprise, as the Raiders were in search of a veteran quarterback. <\/p>\n

“Kirk Cousins had one of his best seasons playing with Klint Kubak as his offensive coordinator in Minnesota. It’s where Cousins won his first playoff game over the [New Orleans] Saints. They were in the game the following week against the [San Franciso] 49ers before they kind of ran out of gas. Cousins has played well in this system,” Pelissero said. <\/p>\n

\"Raider\"<\/p>\n

Jan 4, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) on the field before the game against the New Orleans Saints at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Based on the value Cousins brings to Kubiak and potentially, Mendoza, it could quietly be one of the Raiders’ more valuable signings in the long run, in terms of them getting the best bang for their bucks. They will get Cousins’ services with the Atlanta Falcons, helping foot the bill. That is also a win. <\/p>\n

Cousins recently explained that Kubiak’s presence played a significant role in his decision to join the Raiders. The relationship between Kubiak, Cousins, and Janocko, cannot be understated. <\/p>\n

\"Raider\"<\/p>\n

Dec 29, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) warms up before a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cIt starts with the coaching staff. I was really excited to work with coaches I\u2019ve worked with before in Klint Kubiak, Rick Dennison, Andrew Janocko. I had some of my best years playing with them. Coaching is a big deal in this league, so getting around them excited me. I think it\u2019s a team that has a lot of young talent and they\u2019re building something special, and I want to be a part of that,” Cousins said after signing with the Raiders. <\/p>\n

\u201cI can talk about him all I want, but my actions really show what I think of him, by being here,\u201d Cousins said of Kubiak. \u201cGreat football mind, hard working, there\u2019s a humility there that I deeply respect. He\u2019s a great question-asker who wants to do what the quarterback\u2019s comfortable with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Raider\"<\/p>\n

Mar 31, 2026; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak during the 2026 NFL Annual League Meeting at the Arizona Biltmore. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Las Vegas Raiders have begun solidifying their depth at multiple position groups. Dec 29, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":860680,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2074],"tags":[223,254,2554,224,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-860679","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-atlanta-falcons","8":"tag-atlanta","9":"tag-atlanta-falcons","10":"tag-atlantafalcons","11":"tag-falcons","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116368616084598746","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/860679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=860679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/860679\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/860680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=860679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=860679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=860679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}