The Las Vegas Raiders selected reigning Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza first overall in the 2026 NFL draft after the quarterback’s dominant, national championship-winning season.

Now, Mendoza is doing his best to acclimate to the next level so he can compete with veteran Kirk Cousins for the starting job. However, he was recently required by the league to attend the NFL Players Association Rookie Premier event, which cost him practice time, and he was honest about how he felt on the matter.

“I’m going to be completely honest with you — I’d rather be practicing right now, and I was really upset about actually having to miss practice for this,” Mendoza told Sports Illustrated’s Gilbert Manzano.

“Although it’s great. . . . It’s still been a great moment to where it was mandatory I be here. I’m not going to feel sorry for myself and feel wishy-washy.”

Mendoza did his best to make the most out of things.

“I’m going to have a smile on my face and make the most of that present moment,” Mendoza said. “Live and learn all the [NFLPA] benefits, make all the connections with different mentors here, let me make sure I can maximize my time to be able to create a positive impact and learn about my situation and surroundings. So those are all things that I really benefited from being here.”

Mendoza is expected to sit behind Cousins as things stand, but if he can show out in training camp, there’s no telling how fast he can see the field.

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