When Will We See Fernando Mendoza? & More Questions About the 2026 Raiders

230:14Get your tickets to the Sept 1st live show in Chicago! lh-st.com/shows/09-01-2026-the-athletic-football-show-with-robert-mays

Look, last year was an unmitigated disaster for the Las Vegas Raiders. But even unmitigated disasters can have silver linings. For the Raiders, that came in the form of the top overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, which allowed them to select Fernando Mendoza, fresh off a National Championship and Heisman-winning season at Indiana. When might we finally see Mendoza this season? What can new coach Klint Kubiak, fresh off a championship of his own, do with Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty at his disposal? And how does the defense pivot after losing Patrick Graham to the Steelers. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman preview the 2026 Raiders on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

0:00 Welcome to the show
0:14 Offseason in 60 seconds
0:45 What are you most excited about?
0:55 Ashton Jeanty & Brock Bowers
1:14 There was a prayer circle involved!
2:32 Klint Kubiak
2:52 "We're just dogs chasing cars"
4:31 Bowers = Jaxon Smith-Njigba
5:48 Y'all are such f***ing nerds
6:02 Fernando Mendoza
11:05 What are you watching closely in the first month?
11:15 Young players on defense
16:02 What's keeping you up at night?
16:12 Dave calls iso
19:39 Maxx Crosby trade again?
23:30 What's a successful season?
27:18 He's a big boy
30:00 I'm already mad at you, Robert

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