What's confirmed comes straight from Kubiak. "There is no controversy there," he said, adding that Cousins is "playing at a very high level." On Mendoza, he said the team has a plan but no timeline. "Fernando is gonna play at some point, OK? It's not gonna be this week."
That settles the question Kubiak opened on Sunday. After the 35-21 loss to the Rams, he said the staff was thinking about everything to fix the offense, which put Mendoza's debut on the table for a Week 8 trip to a 2-5 Jets team.
The numbers explain the call. Per NFL.com, Cousins leads the league with 16 touchdown passes through seven weeks and ranks third with 1,877 passing yards, with five interceptions. The Raiders started 3-0 and have lost four straight, but the run game and defense have been the bigger problems. Mendoza's only action came in relief at New England in Week 5, where he went 6 of 8 for 48 yards.
For RSO owners, Cousins keeps his value as a streaming or bye-week starter for at least one more week, and the Jets matchup is a reasonable spot. Don't pay up for him in trades, though. A 38-year-old on a team that just told everyone the rookie is coming has a short runway, and every loss brings the switch closer.
Mendoza owners should sit tight. His dynasty value rests on the next several seasons, not on Week 8, and his rookie contract stays cheap either way. If a rival is frustrated by the wait, that is a buying window, not a selling one. Just don't plug him into a lineup expecting snaps soon.
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