Kirk Cousins was traded away from the Las Vegas Raiders, but his replacement wants that clear: Cousins is not gone for good.
“Well, he’s not gone. He’s not gone forever,” said Fernando Mendoza, the 22-year-old rookie set to make his first NFL start Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.
Mendoza spent the first nine games of his rookie season sharing a quarterback room with Cousins, the veteran the Raiders traded to Minnesota after using the first overall pick on Mendoza. Despite knowing his job was on the line, Cousins welcomed the rookie rather than keeping his distance.
“As a family, they’ve done so much for me,” Mendoza said of Cousins’ wife Julie and their sons Cooper and Turner. “They’ve essentially taken me into their household when they were here, and they welcomed me with open arms.”
Mendoza said Cousins held nothing back when it came to preparation, from film study to the routines that go into a weekly start.
“He has shared with no restrictions or no constraints,” Mendoza said.
Mendoza now gets the chance to apply what he learned when he takes the field in Las Vegas against Seattle. He acknowledged the adjustment ahead, saying he expects to miss having Cousins down the hall once the season moves on.
“I’m going to miss him, and I really appreciate and am deeply thankful for everything that the Cousins family has offered to me,” Mendoza said.
As for catching up with his former mentor, Mendoza made clear he’s in no rush — he still has Cousins’ phone number, and a game to prepare for first.
