Raiders QB decision: Why Kirk Cousins might end up starting in Week 1 and how Tom Brady convinced him to sign

The Raiders are expected to use the No. 1 pick on Fernando Mendoza, but he might not be the team's starter to open the season

With just two weeks to go until the start of the 2026 NFL Draft, it feels like a given that the Las Vegas Raiders are going to select Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick. 

The Raiders appear to have divulged their draft plans to Kirk Cousins, because in his first official day with the team, he seemed to all but confirm that Mendoza will be the pick. During an interview with NFL Network, Cousins mentioned that the Indiana quaterback will be a "great addition" to the team. 

"He was here [Tuesday] on his draft day visit," Cousins said of Mendoza. "We were able to watch film together. I think he'll be a great addition to the [QB] room."

With Mendoza on the roster, that's going to create an interesting situation at quarterback. The Raiders will have to decide whether they want to roll with Cousins to start the season or whether they want to throw Mendoza into the fray right away. So who will be the Week 1 starter? Most signs seem to be pointing to Cousins. 

Why Cousins could end up starting in Week 1

When Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons back in March 2024, the team ended up blindsiding him one month later by using the eighth overall pick on a QB in Michael Penix Jr.. You can bet the Raiders aren't going to make the same mistake. 

Cousins seems to be very well aware of the situation in Las Vegas: The Raiders will be using the top pick on a QB, but Cousins will be given every chance to win the starting QB job. 

"I honestly don't want to start unless I'm the best option, and I told [coach] Klint [Kubiak] that," Cousins said Wednesday. "The best player should play. As long as that's the case, I have no qualms with however it plays out, but I do think Fernando is going to be a great addition to our team."

A rookie quarterback competing against a 14-year veteran almost seems like an unfair fight. Cousins has more than a decade of NFL knowledge in his head and that should be enough to help him beat out Mendoza for the job, at least in the early going. Assuming the Raiders take Mendoza, the rookie QB will have to learn a completely new offense and he'll expected to play more from under center, which is something he didn't really do in college, so it could be a steep learning curve. 

As for Cousins, he spent three seasons with Kubiak in Minnesota (2019-21) , so he's already familiar with the offense that the new Raiders head coach will be running in Las Vegas, which should give him a head start in a potential QB competition. 

Speaking of Kubiak, back at the NFL's Annual League Meeting, he was actually asked his thoughts on potentially starting a rookie quarterback this season and he gave an answer that makes it seem like Cousins will be the favorite in the club house to win the starting job. 

"Ideally, you don't want [Mendoza] to start from Day 1," Kubiak said on March 31. "You'd love him to be able to learn behind somebody. That's in a perfect world. It doesn't always work out that way. Sometimes they have to play from Day 1, and it's our job as coaches to get them ready to go. I think it does help the player if they can sit behind a mature adult and watch how they run the show." 

When Kubiak made those comments, Cousins hadn't signed with the Raiders yet, but now that he's on the roster, it seems pretty safe to say that the new head coach would prefer to open the season with a veteran quarterback under center. 

Even if Cousins opens the season as the starter, he did say he would be more than willing to serve as a mentor to Mendoza. 

"I think he's going to have a great future in our league," Cousins said of Mendoza. "I have no problem being a voice in the room to help him to the degree that I can. He's going to have great support around him with the coaching staff, but to be able to watch a veteran quarterback go through his habits and routines and process, I think that can be a great asset for him."

During his introductory press conference with the Raiders, Cousins talked about a few things that he might be able to bring to the table that a rookie might not be able to offer just yet. 

"If you're talking about playing with timing, playing with accuracy, wanting to understand things, have good vision of the field, good feel for the position, those are traits that I've always tried to pride myself," Cousins said. 

Those traits are all areas where Cousins will have the advantage until Mendoza is able to learn the ropes of the NFL. 

The worst kept secret in the NFL right now might be the fact that the Raiders plan on taking Mendoza with the top pick, but that doesn't mean they plan on playing him in Week 1. Based on comments from Cousins and Kubiak, it won't be a surprise at all if the 37-year-old veteran is the Raiders' opening day starter come September. 

How Tom Brady helped bring Cousins to Las Vegas

After his nightmare situation in Atlanta, Cousins wanted to do his due diligence before signing with a team this offseason. In the end, the Raiders were able to win him over after the team's most famous minority owner (Tom Brady) decided to give him a call.  

"You know me, I'm going to do my homework before I move my family somewhere, so I had a lot of conversations with people in the Raiders organization, and one of those was with Tom," Cousins said. "I texted him, asked him to call me when he could. He actually FaceTimed me -- I was at youth baseball practice -- so I stepped away and talked with him for a minute, just to get on the same page, understand the vision of the organization, and kind of what he see saw ahead and whether I'd be a good fit for it or not."

Whatever Brady said ended up working, because Cousins was ready to sign as soon as soon as the FaceTime session was over. 

"I got off the call, and I called my wife. I said, 'That was a really life-giving call with Tom.' He gets it," Cousins said. "He's been where I've been, and then some. I think de understands what it needs to look like, what it will look like, and I felt really like a shot in the arm after talking to him, and I felt like that was a big nudge for me to come to Vegas."

And let's not forget, Cousins will be getting paid $20 million this year, which isn't exactly backup money. 

After getting misled by the Falcons, you have to think that Brady was pretty clear with Cousins about what the Raiders are planning to do at quarterback. Yes, Mendoza is the future, but from the sound of it, Cousins will have the chance to be the present.