Fernando Mendoza: I believe I'm still the underdog, I'm on the bottom of the totem pole
After being selected at No. 1 overall, Mendoza said he's feels like the Raiders are a perfect fit.
It’s finally official: Fernando Mendoza is a Raider. While Las Vegas selecting Mendoza at No. 1 overall has been virtually guaranteed since the Raiders clinched the top pick, receiving the phone call was still a special moment for the quarterback.
“There's been a lot of anticipation whether I was going to end up here. And nothing was ever for certain except for tonight, so when I saw that call, I got a whole lot of chills on my entire body, and I was ecstatic,” Mendoza said on a video call with Raiders media just after the selection, via transcript from the team. “There's a lot of emotion even right now.
However, I understand this is not the end of the journey, although this is a celebration, this is a start of a new thing. And like coach [Klint] Kubiak told me on the phone, to stay humble and hungry and to keep on trying to learn every single day. ” Mendoza noted that he would’ve felt like any team would be a good fit, but he felt like the Raiders were the best fit because of the coaching staff.
But there are some others around the club, too, he’s looking forward to working with. “[T]he great ownership ‚ whether it's Mr. [Mark] Davis, Mr.