Kirk Cousins and the Las Vegas Raiders almost upset the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 4 in their game on Sunday. However, the Raiders were ultimately defeated by a final score of 30-27. Las Vegas is now 3-1 overall while Kansas City moved to 4-0 to begin the 2026 campaign. Although the Raiders suffered a difficult loss, their Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza quarterback strategy did receive praise from Patrick Mahomes.

“It's going to do a lot of great things for him. Kirk is a true pro,” Mahomes told reporters, via Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team. “… It will be great for Fernando to learn and just take in. You don't know until you're in the NFL. Hopefully not too much, it went really well for me and Alex (Smith), hopefully maybe not that much unless I'm gone or something like that.”

Mahomes compared the Raiders' QB situation to when he joined the Chiefs and was in a similar situation with Alex Smith. The Chiefs strategy worked out, as Mahomes was able to learn from a veteran QB and has since become one of the greatest quarterbacks in the game.

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Will Mendoza reach that level as well? Only time will tell, but he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft for a reason. The Raiders certainly believe in his talent and high ceiling. Learning from Cousins should teach him valuable lessons about playing the quarterback position in the NFL.

For now, Cousins will attempt to help the Raiders bounce back following their competitive Week 4 loss.