Earlier this week, Fernando Mendoza revealed that he won’t attend the upcoming NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. While the Las Vegas Raiders, who are projected to pick him, haven’t made any comments, Mendoza met with a stakeholder.

Reports suggest that Tom Brady, a minority owner of the Raiders, met with Mendoza at the Intermountain Health Performance Center on Tuesday.

“#Raiders owner Tom Brady was in the facility today as projected No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza was in for his official visit,” NFL insider Ari Meriov reported in an X post on Wednesday. 

The Indiana Hoosiers' star quarterback was on a scheduled visit with the franchise after he announced he would stay home with his family.

The 22-year-old has expressed that it would be “fantastic” and “meaningful” if Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion, mentored him. 

According to reports, “Brady potentially got some one-on-one time” with Mendoza. While he has not declared any inclination towards a team, Mendoza is just the kind of powerhouse the Raiders need.

And with Brady backing him up, he could turn the Raiders offense into an elite one.

“He's played tremendous all season, 16-0 leading his team… He’s just a very mature young man, he’s got a bright future,” Brady said in an appearance on The Herd hosted by Colin Cowherd.

But for all the accolades Mendoza has piled up, TB12 feels none of that matters in the NFL.

"I don't care whether you won the Heisman or you're the 199th pick in the draft. It's ‘what do you do when you get there? How important is this to you? Are you obsessed with your job? Are you obsessed with being the best you can be?" Brady added.

Going by that, the Raiders are also not going all in with Mendoza. They plan on building the young quarterback first.

The Raiders Have a Game Plan for Fernando Mendoza

Fernando Mendoza ended the 2025 season with an NCAA championship. He threw 41 passing touchdowns and only six interceptions for 3,535 passing yards. He is, however, most likely to back up Kirk Cousins. 

“Ideally, you don't want him to start day one. You'd love him to be able to learn behind somebody. That's in a perfect world,” head coach Klint Kubiak said at the annual NFL meeting. 

The Raiders signed the 37-year-old veteran QB with a one-year, $20 million guaranteed deal earlier this month. Cousins will be reuniting with Kubiak after their time with the Minnesota Vikings.

“I made this clear to (coach) Klint (Kubiak) that the best player needs to play. If that's not me, I don't want to be out there. I don't think that's the best thing for the team. If I'm the best option, I think it's important those guys are out there,” Cousins said during his introductory press conference.

This marks Cousins' 15th NFL season and the third time he has joined a team that will draft a young quarterback.

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Akanksha Biradar

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore