Fernando Mendoza Gets Bad News Immediately After Raiders’ Kirk Cousins Trade

On Tuesday, the Las Vegas Raiders experienced a significant update to their roster as they traded starting QB Kirk Cousins to the Minnesota Vikings for a third-round pick. This trade marked the beginning of a new era for the Raiders, with top draft pick Fernando Mendoza set to make his first start. With this development, the team's depth chart underwent a change, highlighting the need to fill the open roster spot, which would most likely be addressed by signing from their practice squad.

The most logical candidate for this position would be defensive tackle Tim Keenan, who has been active for the past three weeks. Keenan cannot be activated again unless he is signed to the team's roster. The offense saw the introduction of quarterback Fernando Mendoza and running back Ashton Jeanty, who will be joining seasoned players Aidan O'Connell, Mike Washington Jr, Dylan Laube, and Connor Heyward.

Wide receivers Jalen Nailor, Cody White, Tre Tucker, Dareke Young, Malik Benson, and Jalen Nailor were all retained, while Brock Bowers and Jack Bech joined the tight end and wide receiver corps as a TE/SWR.

On the offensive line, Kolton Miller and Charles Grant reprised their roles as LT and LG, while Spencer Burford, Bryce Cabeldue, Tyler Linderbaum, and Jackson Powers-Johnson completed the unit. In the defensive line, defensive interior (DI) Tonka Hemingway and Thomas Booker IV were joined by JJ Pegues, DI Adam Butler, and Folorunso Fatukasi. The linebackers' corps featured Quay Walker, Tommy Eichenberg, Segun Olubi, and Nakobi Dean, with Cody Lindenberg replacing Nakobi Dean.

The secondary experienced changes as well, with cornerbacks Quay Walker, Tommy Eichenberg, Segun Olubi, and Nakobi Dean making the move to the defensive line. Nakobi Dean was joined by Cody Lindenberg on the linebacker squad. The cornerbacks for this unit include Darien Porter, Jermod McCoy, Eric Stokes, and Hezekiah Masses. Special teams saw the continued presence of kicker Matt Gay and punter AJ Cole, while Alex Ward took up the KR position.