{"id":864546,"date":"2026-04-12T05:27:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T05:27:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/864546\/"},"modified":"2026-04-12T05:27:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T05:27:44","slug":"raiders-gm-john-spytek-inadvertently-debunks-one-of-the-biggest-knocks-against-future-qb-fernando-mendoza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/864546\/","title":{"rendered":"Raiders GM John Spytek inadvertently debunks one of the biggest knocks against future QB Fernando Mendoza"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Las Vegas Raiders know what they\u2019re getting in rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza, regardless of whether he played under center a lot in college.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"Las
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFeb 24, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tKirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

There\u2019s been a lot of chatter lately about Fernando Mendoza. It\u2019s that time of the offseason when we have nothing better to do, so we just start saying random things. This time, it\u2019s calling Mendoza an \u201cRPO merchant,\u201d or talking about him not playing enough under center. It\u2019s part of the pre-draft process for quarterbacks, unfortunately.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople won\u2019t say it, I will, Ty Simpson schematically is a better fit or marriage for what the Las Vegas Raiders would do under Klint Kubiak than Fernando Mendoza,\u201d former NFL QB and now ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky recently said.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMost of the things that he does, at least half of the things that he does from a scheme standpoint, are underneath the center\u2026 Fernando Mendoza took five snaps total from underneath the center in his college career.\u201d<\/p>\n

John Spytek proves that playing a lot under center doesn\u2019t actually matter<\/p>\n

Looking at it from a different angle, if you draft a quarterback based on schematic fit, it will never work for you. You draft your quarterback, and then build the scheme and team around him, and put him in the best situations to win. So, frankly, that doesn\u2019t matter in this equation. Quarterbacks can learn how to play from under center. And, in the grand scheme of things, how much you play under center these days really doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very much a shotgun game in college. \u2026It\u2019s different now,\u201d Spytek said. \u201cIt\u2019s not anything that you can\u2019t work through. It\u2019s just you have to acknowledge that we\u2019re going to have to spend time with any of these young QBs, teaching them the center-quarterback exchange.\u201d<\/p>\n

Circling back to what #Raiders<\/a> GM John Spytek said about how much they put into the amount of reps a QB has taken under center in college: <\/p>\n

“It’s very much a shotgun game in college. \u2026It’s different now. It’s not anything that you can’t work through. It’s just you have to\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2014 Ryan McFadden (@ryanmcfadden_) April 6, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

As Spytek said, most college QBs aren\u2019t playing from under center these days anyway. So, every quarterback these days is trying to learn to play under center. Not to mention, Mendoza played under center more at Cal in 2024 than he did at Indiana last season. It\u2019s not like he has never played from under center. And, he made an effort to do it at his Pro Day just to kind of prove a point.<\/p>\n

To provide context regarding under-center play, last season, Seattle<\/a> executed 531 under-center plays, not including quarterback spikes and kneels, and 422 plays from shotgun, according to Sports Info Solutions. Seattle, therefore, ran more plays under center than from shotgun, which is not a universal practice among teams. For example, during the previous season, Cousins played 177 snaps under center and 443 from shotgun in Weeks 8-18. Mendoza will be required to take numerous under-center snaps, and Cousins can serve as a model for this transition.<\/p>\n

Spytek\u2019s comments reinforce the main point: pre-draft concerns about playing from under center are overstated. Teams just need to acknowledge this is part of a young quarterback\u2019s transition. The Raiders will have time to help Mendoza make this adjustment, especially since he is expected to learn behind Kirk Cousins.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\"Memphis\t\t<\/p>\n

Las Vegas Raiders News<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tRaiders seem to have an interest in an under-the-radar offensive lineman despite being in rare company with one unique trait\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

The Las Vegas Raiders don\u2019t have a huge need at offensive tackle, especially when it comes to starter-level talent, but it\u2019s hard not to have interest in Memphis OT Travis Burke, who\u2019s 6\u20199.<\/p>\n