The Raiders didn't use the No. 1 overall pick on Fernando Mendoza because they weren't sure whether he could become their franchise quarterback. They drafted him because they believe he can. But there's an important distinction between believing Mendoza will eventually become QB1 and treating him like QB1 before he's earned it. And if Tom Brady has meaningful influence over how Las Vegas develops its young quarterback, it shouldn't surprise anyone that the Raiders appear determined to make Mendoza experience the difference.

The No. 1 Pick Started at the Bottom

There was something fascinating about Mendoza's first few months as a Raider that probably didn't receive enough attention. He wasn't immediately installed as the backup quarterback. During OTAs and mandatory minicamp, the first overall pick in the NFL Draft was working with the third-team offense. When training camp arrived, Mendoza had moved up to QB2 behind Kirk Cousins. On paper, that might look insignificant. It's June football. Depth charts change. Coaches experiment. But philosophically, it might tell us quite a bit about how the Raiders intend to develop him. Mendoza arrived in Las Vegas with virtually every status symbol a young quarterback could possibly have.

• No. 1 overall pick.
• Heisman Trophy winner.
• National champion.
• Face of the Raiders' future.

Las Vegas selected him after a historic season at Indiana in which he completed 72 percent of his passes for 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns while leading the Hoosiers to an undefeated national championship. There was never much mystery about what the organization thought Mendoza could eventually become. And yet his first NFL assignment essentially amounted to this: Start at the bottom. Now climb.

That Sounds an Awful Lot Like Tom Brady

There may not be another person associated with the Raiders who believes more deeply in the value of earning a quarterback job than Tom Brady. Brady entered the NFL from almost the exact opposite position as Mendoza. Mendoza was selected first. Brady was selected 199th. And when New England released its first preseason depth chart in August 2000, Brady wasn't QB2. He wasn't even QB3. Drew Bledsoe was first. John Friesz was second. Michael Bishop was third. Tom Brady was fourth. The quarterback who would eventually win seven Super Bowls entered the NFL looking up at three other names on the depth chart. Nothing about Brady's future was guaranteed. New England had already committed enormous money to Bledsoe. Brady wasn't being groomed publicly as the next face of the franchise. He had to create value for himself every day simply to remain in the building. Obviously, Fernando Mendoza is not Tom Brady, and the Raiders shouldn't artificially recreate Brady's career simply because Brady is now part of the organization. But there is one aspect of Brady's development worth recreating: The mentality that your job is something you take, not something you're handed. Make the No. 1 Pick Feel Like the 199th Pick. Maybe Brady doesn't want Mendoza walking into the Raiders facility every morning feeling like the No. 1 overall pick. Maybe he wants him walking in feeling like the 199th. Not because the organization doubts him. Because they want him chasing something. Being selected first overall creates an unusual psychological environment for a quarterback. Before you've taken an NFL snap, everyone already knows the plan. You're the future. Your jersey is everywhere. Fans are waiting for you. The franchise has publicly attached itself to your success. And whether anyone explicitly says it or not, there's an assumption that the starting job eventually belongs to you. Brady's career was built without that safety net. So one of the best things he may be able to give Mendoza isn't a throwing mechanic or a coverage tip. It's discomfort.

“You Need to Be the Most Everything”

Mendoza has already given us a glimpse into what Brady is telling him privately. While discussing conversations between the two, Mendoza explained that Brady's message about playing quarterback centers around being “the most everything.” The most competitive. The strongest leader. The toughest mentally and physically. And perhaps most importantly, someone who leads by example before expecting teammates to follow him. That's significant because quarterback development isn't exclusively about whether Mendoza can identify Cover 3 or hit an intermediate dig route. The Raiders are eventually going to ask fifty-plus grown NFL players to look at a 22-year-old and believe he should lead their football team. Being selected first overall doesn't automatically create that authority. Winning people over does.

Kirk Cousins Makes This Possible

This entire developmental approach becomes much easier because Kirk Cousins is in the building. Cousins isn't simply an emergency veteran sitting behind Mendoza. He's a four-time Pro Bowler entering his 15th NFL season with more than 44,000 career passing yards. He also has an established relationship with Klint Kubiak. That gives Las Vegas something many teams drafting a quarterback first overall don't have: Patience. Kubiak has essentially said as much. Before training camp, he made it clear that Cousins would begin as the starter and receive the majority of the first-team repetitions. He also said he wanted Mendoza and Aidan O'Connell pushing him. Even more revealing was Kubiak's philosophy before Mendoza was drafted: in a perfect situation, he doesn't believe a rookie quarterback should have to start immediately. That's important. Because it means the Raiders aren't building their quarterback plan around a predetermined date. They're building it around readiness. There's a Difference Between Developing and Delaying. None of this means Las Vegas should bury Mendoza on the depth chart just to teach him some artificial lesson about adversity. If he's clearly the best quarterback on the roster, of course you play him. Development stops being useful when a team ignores what is happening on the field. But there's a difference between intentionally holding a player back and refusing to artificially push him forward. If Mendoza passes O'Connell, move him ahead of O'Connell. He did. If he eventually outplays Cousins, move him ahead of Cousins. If that happens in September, great. If it happens in November, great. If the Raiders believe sitting for most of his rookie season gives Mendoza the best chance of becoming an elite quarterback for the next decade, that's fine too. The goal shouldn't be to get Fernando Mendoza onto the field as quickly as possible. The goal should be making sure that once he gets there, he never gives the job back.

Mendoza's Background Makes the Approach Even More Interesting

There's another reason the Raiders may feel comfortable putting Mendoza through this process: His personality appears uniquely suited for it. Mendoza's reputation coming into the NFL wasn't built solely around physical talent. Preparation, leadership and work ethic were central parts of his evaluation. NFL.com's scouting profile specifically noted his competitiveness, preparation and mentality - traits influenced, fittingly enough, by Mendoza growing up idolizing Brady. His college career also wasn't the story of a five-star quarterback walking into a program and immediately receiving the offense. At Cal, Mendoza had to work his way from deep on the quarterback depth chart into the starting lineup before eventually transferring to Indiana and becoming the best player in college football. In other words, making Mendoza climb isn't introducing him to an unfamiliar process. It's asking him to do what he has already done.

The Most Important Competition Might Be With Himself

The organization can simultaneously believe Mendoza is its future and believe he isn't ready to start Week 1. In fact, refusing to confuse potential with readiness might be one of the healthiest things the Raiders can do for him. Mendoza doesn't need to beat Kirk Cousins because Las Vegas desperately needs a different quarterback. He needs to reach the point where the coaches have no choice but to play him. That's a much higher standard. And it creates exactly the environment Brady spent his career thriving in.

Imagine the Moment He Finally Becomes QB1

There's something else valuable about making Mendoza actually climb the depth chart. Think about what QB1 means when he finally gets there. He won't simply be starting because Roger Goodell announced his name first on draft night. He won't be starting because fans became impatient. He won't be starting because the Raiders need to justify using the No. 1 pick on him. He'll be starting because he walked into an NFL quarterback room with veteran competition and took the job. QB3. Then QB2. Eventually QB1. Every step earned. There's real psychological value in that. More importantly, there's credibility inside the locker room. The offensive linemen know he earned it. The receivers know he earned it. The veterans know he earned it. And Mendoza knows he earned it.

Brady's Greatest Lesson Might Have Nothing to Do With Throwing a Football

Tom Brady can teach Fernando Mendoza an almost unlimited amount about quarterbacking. How to prepare for an opponent. How to manipulate a safety. How to manage the pocket. How to handle December football. How to lead a locker room. How to respond after playing terribly. How to maintain standards when everyone around you starts telling you how great you are. But perhaps the most valuable lesson Brady can help instill is much simpler. Never become comfortable because of the name next to your draft position. Brady spent more than two decades behaving like the league could replace him tomorrow. That's an almost absurd mentality for a seven-time Super Bowl champion. It's also part of what made him Tom Brady. Fernando Mendoza arrived in Las Vegas under completely different circumstances. He's the chosen one. He's the No. 1 pick. He's supposed to become the franchise quarterback. Everyone knows it. But maybe the Raiders don't want him thinking about any of that when he walks into work. Maybe Brady wants Mendoza to look at the quarterback ahead of him and think exactly what Brady once did. That's his job. I want it. And I'm going to make them give it to me. The Raiders have already shown Mendoza that being drafted first gets you through the door. Becoming QB1 requires something else entirely. You have to take it.