Fernando Mendoza entered the 2026 NFL Draft cycle as about as clean a prospect as evaluators had seen in years. The Indiana quarterback led the Indiana Hoosiers to a perfect 16-0 record and the College Football Playoff national title, throwing for 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns against just six interceptions, and won the Heisman Trophy.
With the Las Vegas Raiders holding the No. 1 overall pick, Mendoza was widely projected to land with themaccording to almost every mock draft. Tom Brady hascompleted every preparation to select the 22-year-old in the first round as a minority owner of the Raiders.
Now, less than two weeks before draft night in Pittsburgh, a resurfaced social media comment has put a dent in that immaculate pre-draft resume.
Fernando Mendoza faces massive backlash ahead of 2026 NFL Draft
Pop Crave posted a screenshot to X showing a comment Mendoza allegedly left on a 2020 LeBron James Instagram post about George Floyd. LeBron’s post featured the now-iconic image of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck alongside a photo of Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem.
Ryan Clark Shuts Down Made-Up Racist Quote Tied to Fernando Mendoza's No-Throw Combine Decision
Ryan Clark Shuts Down Made-Up Racist Quote Tied to Fernando Mendoza’s No-Throw Combine Decision (Imagn Image)
Mendoza’s replyread, “You need to explain the context of the first photo of the cop on the man, because you never know what he did wrong.”
Fernando Mendoza is under fire following a resurfaced comment he made on LeBron James’ post about George Floyd:
“You need to explain the context of the first photo of the cop on the man, because you never know what he did wrong 🤷♂️” pic.twitter.com/hFGAhGoEUp
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) April 8, 2026
George Floyd died in May 2020 after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over nine minutes. Despite Floyd’s repeated pleas that he couldn’t breathe, Chauvin didn’t move; he was later convicted of murder.
His tragic death led to endless protests nationwide, but he received serious negative attention online.
During the initial aftermath, Mendoza was about 15 or 16 years old. But a chorus of skeptics raised eyebrows at his remark and threw him under the bus ahead of the NFL draft.
“He cooked,” one userwrote.
Anotheradded, “…there goes his career.”
A third onepenned, “Oh, Uh! There goes his NFL dream! FAFO! Unless he gets on his knees and apologizes. We’ll see!”
The fourth userclaimed, “A white football guy being racist.. wow im shocked.”
A fifth fanremarked, “Nobody in that locker room in LV f—— with him after this one.”
Before this, the 22-year-old Cuban-American from Miami had no off-field issues. It’s still unclear if his team will release a statement.
At his Indiana pro day last week, he completed 53 of 56 passes, essentially locking him in as the projected top pick. He also just finished a visit with the Raiders. So far, the old comments don’t seem to be hurting his draft stock.