After spending nine weeks watching veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins run the show for the Las Vegas Raiders, Fernando Mendoza will finally get the chance to start a game for the Raiders in the Week 10 game against the Seattle Seahawks. However, Jon Gruden has some bad news for the rookie quarterback.
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“The Raiders can’t run the ball,” Jon opined on The Gruden Family Football Show. “They’re averaging 2.9 yards a carry. They can’t run the ball. So, Fernando is going to have to throw it to win it against Seattle. Good luck. I mean, that’s the strength of the Seahawks.
“And the Raider defense, I just can’t understand what the heck is going on. McCaffrey catches that touchdown pass last week. They’re dropping D-linemen. He’s wide open. How the hell? I don’t understand the Raiders. They can’t stop the run. They’re giving up over 30 points a game, six different games. I’m rooting for the Raiders, but I’m gonna pick Seattle. And I hope Fernando gets off to a good start. But at least next week he’s got an easier game at Denver.”
Las Vegas has recorded only 2.9 yards per carry and is second-to-last in total rushing yardage (642 yards). That’s the reality of the Raiders, even though they acquired running back Ashton Jeanty, spending the No.6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Out of 40 qualified running backs, Jeanty ranks 38th with 3.2 yards per carry.
The coaching staff had to bench Jeanty in Week 8 due to the low production. In his stead, they brought in Mike Washington. He is averaging 3.9 yards per carry. However, things went wrong in the Week 9 game, where he ran for negative three yards on six carries.
Mendoza completed 72% of his passes for 3,535 yards and scored 41 touchdowns in his last season at Indiana. He further added 276 more yards in 90 rushing attempts. That made his average 3.1 rushing yards per attempt.
To make things worse, the Raiders’ offensive line has struggled to keep the pocket intact. Hence, the game against the Seahawks will certainly be a challenge for the rookie quarterback. And Jay Gruden agreed.
“A lot of pressure. This is a number one overall pick,” Jay weighed in on the Week 10 game between the Raiders and the Seahawks. “Everybody’s excited to see him. Here’s your first start. Who do I got? You got the Seahawks. Oh, good. Lord have mercy. Can we start them against the Jets or somebody like that? No. It’s going to be the Seahawks. It’s going to be a tough game for Fernando, but he has a couple big players. [Michael] Mayer and Brock Bowers. Really good security blankets.”
He hopes that head coach Klint Kubiak will lean on outside zone runs, play-action bootlegs, and tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer to take some heat off Mendoza. According to Jay, Kubiak has to find ways to make things easier for the young quarterback. But the Raiders’ headache is not just about their defense, but their offense too.
“And offensively, I like the way [Zach] Charbonnet ended the game last week. They’re getting the running game going a little bit, which is really a lot of trouble for this horrific Raider defense, because now you got to stop the run and then they got this guy, Smith-Njigba. They got nobody that can stop him.”
Meanwhile, Drew Lock will lead the offense for the Seahawks as their quarterback. But according to Jon, Jalen Milroe should be ready since Lock is “not 100%.”
Between a league-worst 2.9-yards-per-carry ground game and a leaky defense, Mendoza seems to be walking into a buzzsaw against Seattle. Unless the Raiders head coach can bring in easy completions to Bowers and Mayer, Mendoza will likely face a brutal welcome into the NFL.