Kirk Cousins picked to start Las Vegas Raiders' opening game of the NFL season

[p]Heisman Trophy winner [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/mendoza-fernando/jmACrEFd/"]Mendoza[/a] will have to wait his turn after new coach Klint Kubiak put his early faith in 38-year-old veteran [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/cousins-kirk/lAwzTD0t/"]Cousins[/a], who will start for his fourth NFL franchise.[/p][p]"[b]Kirk's going to be the starting quarterback,[/b]" Kubiak told a press conference.[/p][p]"[b]He has played really good football... Kirk has had a really good offseason, very good camp. He earned it.[/b]"[/p][p]Barring any last-minute changes, it will mark the first time since [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/mayfield-baker/rg4szxoU/"]Baker Mayfield[/a] in 2018 that a quarterback drafted with the first overall pick does not start the following season.[/p][p]Having watched their team finish a distant last in the tough AFC West division for back-to-back seasons, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/las-vegas-raiders/Ei4Qg76E/"]Raiders[/a] fans have high hopes that Mendoza can make an impact.[/p][embed guid="b798f58f-a058-423c-be0a-6581cf0ffad1" url="https://x.com/NFL/status/2095189207325241736?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]The Cuban-American Mendoza last season led [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/indianapolis-colts/OOp2WPqe/"]Indiana[/a] to the United States college football crown and bagged the Heisman as college football's top player.[/p][p]He inspired the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/indiana-hoosiers/zuGiQq0T/"]Hoosiers[/a] to an unbeaten campaign and their first national title, completing 273 of 379 passes for 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns with only six interceptions.[/p][p]The 22-year-old also ran 90 times for 276 yards and seven touchdowns.[/p][p]While Kubiak evaded a question about whether Mendoza is expected to play at all this season, Cousins - entering his 15th NFL season - got the nod.[/p][p]Across the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/washington-commanders/pYobX5Ul/"]Washington Redskins[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/minnesota-vikings/IsfjpsbD/"]Minnesota Vikings[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/atlanta-falcons/hClIiQIR/"]Atlanta Falcons[/a], Cousins has 167 career starts and 88 wins, with 44,700 passing yards and 298 passing touchdowns.[/p][p]The Raiders have not won a post-season game since they captured the 2003 Super Bowl, and have not even reached the post-season for four years.[/p][p]They sacked coach [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/leblanc-peter/pxwmQe2D/"]Pete Carroll[/a] after last season's disappointing campaign and traded former starting quarterback [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/smith-geno/tdjItF6Q/"]Geno Smith[/a] to the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/new-york-jets/Q9nr9QzE/"]New York Jets[/a].[/p][p]The Raiders [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/football/las-vegas-raiders-Ei4Qg76E/miami-dolphins-WQivmqEf/?mid=8KqzOAv0"]begin their season[/a] against the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/miami-dolphins/WQivmqEf/"]Miami Dolphins[/a] in Las Vegas on September 13.[/p]