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Raiders Owner Says He’s Generated ‘No Pressure’ To Start Mendoza
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- Raiders Owner Says He’s Generated ‘No Pressure’ To Start Mendoza
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
We've been waiting for Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis to speak out about his team's roller-coaster start, and he finally did just that this week, according to a report from Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk that referenced material from Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The first question was about whether he wants to see top draft choice Fernando Mendoza taking snaps at quarterback, and credit Davis for answering this one directly.
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"From me, there's absolutely no pressure whatsoever," Davis said.
The owner then went on to say that the Raiders are "fortunate" to get quarterback Kirk Cousins to "bridge the gap," and he added that Mendoza is "picking it up great"as he learns about the speed of the game and "what football is in the pros."
Davis laid it on thick after that, saying he's seen quarterbacks get fast-tracked onto the field and that they "may do well," but they don't learn all the "intricacies of footwork" and everything else it takes. That limits their development, "maybe throughout their career."
Part of the reason Davis is happy has a lot to do with the way Mendoza is handling all of this off the field, and Davis said he's told people "jokingly" that if Mendoza can actually play, he's going to be "amazing." He called Mendoza a hardworker and a "sponge," and added that he's worked with "Mr. Brady" on a lot of things.
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Okay, time to stop the eye rolling and read between the lines here. Davis may or may not have been unhappy about the Raiders' recent four-game losing streak to at least some extent, but coach Klint Kubiak was able to right the ship slightly and eke out a narrow 38-33 road win over the New York Jets on Sunday.
That means the Raiders will stay on the edges of the potential playoff conversations for the next week or two, and Davis doesn't have to do another fire sale at the trade deadline.
But don't count that as carved in stone just yet. The Raiders go on the road this week to play the San Francisco 49ers, and after that they have a home game against the Seattle Seahawks followed by another road tilt againsts the Denver Broncos.
That's another three-game losing streak waiting to happen, and it also gives us a firmer timeline for the Mendoza move. After that the schedule softens considerably, with the Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Chargers, Tennessee Titans and Arizona Cardinals on the horizon.
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Mendoza will almost certainly start his career for real in one of those games, unless the Raiders can somehow pull off a win in one of the next three games, which would be borderline miraculous given the current state of their defense. For now, it's happy camper time with the owner as Kubiak continues to try to rebuild the roster.
