Raiders pin their hopes on Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft

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HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders hope they have finally landed their franchise quarterback, taking Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza with the first overall selection Thursday night in the NFL draft.

The Raiders will count on Mendoza to help turn around a franchise that owns three Lombardi Trophies but hasn't won a playoff game since appearing in the Super Bowl in the 2002 season. But the Raiders have made it clear they won't rush Mendoza, and in fact signed veteran Kirk Cousins, who likely will be the starting quarterback entering the season.

There will be enough pressure on Mendoza and the organization to validate using the top pick on a player who wasn't prominently on most teams' radar a year ago, even though Las Vegas' selection has been telegraphed for several months.

“There’s been a lot of anticipation whether I was going to end up here,” Mendoza said. "Nothing was ever for certain, except for tonight. So when I saw that call, I got a whole lot of chills on my entire body and I was ecstatic. There’s a lot of emotion even right now. However, I understand this is not the end of the journey, although this is a celebration, this is a start of a new thing.”

Mendoza, who stunningly led Indiana to its first national championship, did not attend the draft in Pittsburgh, opting to watch with family and friends in the Miami area. His mother, Elsa, has multiple sclerosis, which makes traveling difficult, and the family will fly to Las Vegas on Friday when Mendoza will be formally introduced in a news conference.

“I chose the Raiders over Pittsburgh because I wanted my mom to be there,” Mendoza said. “It’d be hard for her to take two trips like that, really back-to-back.”

He is the fourth player in the common draft era that began in 1967 to win the Heisman and national championship and go No. 1 in the following draft. Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in 2020 was the most recent one.

Mendoza also is the fifth Heisman winner to be drafted by the Raiders. Cornerback Charles Woodson in 1998 was the most recent.

“Welcome to Las Vegas @fernandomendoza,” Raiders minority owner Tom Brady posted on social media. “Time to get to work.”

The Raiders' last No. 1 overall pick is remembered as one of the major busts in NFL draft history. LSU's JaMarcus Russell went first overall in 2007, lasting just three seasons while going 7-18.

Was Mendoza, a capable quarterback during his two years as the starter at Cal, a one-year wonder at Indiana and beneficiary of a QB-friendly system? Or did coach Curt Cignetti unlock something in Mendoza that will translate to the NFL? The truth also could be somewhere in the middle.

“I believe I’m still the underdog,” Mendoza said. "Once I got drafted, I’m now part of the NFL, and I can tell you right now I am not one out of 32 (starting) quarterbacks at this moment. So I need to work every single day possible because I’m on the bottom of the totem pole.”

The Raiders have something new — hope. Klint Kubiak is the fifth full-time head coach since the club moved to Las Vegas in 2020, and it's been a similar revolving door with quarterbacks.

But the Raiders also hadn't built up the rest of the roster to give whichever quarterback was taking snaps a fair chance to succeed.

That appears to be changing.

Second-year general manager John Spytek took advantage of having enough salary-cap space by committing nearly $300 million to eight players, including three-time Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum and wide receiver Jalen Nailor.

The Raiders also bring back tight end Brock Bowers, running back Ashton Jeanty and left tackle Kolton Miller to give Cousins and Mendoza help.

But Mendoza has to do his part, too. The Raiders entered the opening night of the draft on the clock. Now it's the quarterback who quickly faces a ticking clock.

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