The Las Vegas Raiders are unlikely to shock anyone with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Everyone expects them to take Fernando Mendoza, the national championship and Heisman Trophy-winning QB out of Indiana.
The intrigue will only start from there, and that's because of the presence of Geno Smith in Vegas.
The Raiders could release Smith, although that requires eating a decent chunk of money.
Alternatively, they could keep Smith around and let him start until Mendoza is ready.
"They're telling people they'd rather not play a rookie QB in Week 1," ESPN's Dan Graziano wrote in a new article this weekend. "So, because they have to pay Smith anyway, they could keep him and start him until Mendoza is ready."
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In a vacuum, it's fair that the Raiders want to be sure Mendoza is ready before they throw him into the fire.
At the same time, this is the guy they're picking to be the face of their franchise. It seems like it would be fair to trust him with the Week 1 starting gig.
Keeping Smith is also a curious choice from a present and future perspective, because eventually, the Raiders will have to move on from the veteran quarterback.
It seems like, in this offseason when a lot of teams want a new QB, that trying to part ways with Smith sooner rather than later would actually be advisable.
The Mendoza pick is clear. What the Raiders do with Smith still has a lot of uncertainty surrounding it.
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