The Las Vegas Raiders have had a very productive and affluent past two drafts. After securing running back Ashton Jeanty in 2025, they followed it up by getting the first-overall pick and using it on breakout star, National Champion, and Heisman winner, Fenrando Mendoza.
After a good, but not great 2025, the Raiders are hoping (and praying) that this new 1-2 punch can bring them back into the competitive fold. There are plenty of new and exciting contenders in the AFC, but you have to believe that the AFC West is still going to be the toughest division in all of football.
This is where the pressure resides more on Jeanty than on Mendoza. Sophomore slumps are a very real thing in the NFL, as well as many sports around the world. Alex Kay of Bleacher Report added Jeanty to the players who will develop into stars, rather than succumb to the slump.
That is 100% correct, but a very cautious guarantee. Mendoza has all the makings of an excellent quarterback in the NFL, but this kid has just gained national attention. Now, he is playing in one of the biggest cities in the world when it comes to sports and entertainment. Is he going to be able to allow Jeanty to get the ball as much as he did a season ago?
Jeanty had 321 touches with the football last season, which was the sixth-most in the NFL. Not just rookies, but the entirety of the NFL.
That is going to change very fast with a quarterback facing absurd expectations like Mendoza. Jeanty has to make every single touch count in 2026, as there might not be as many as before.
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