Cousins Joins Raiders, Mentoring Mendoza

0:00It's April 2. From kickoff to the final whistle, this is NFL News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. The Las Vegas Raiders just locked in better and quarterback Kirk Cousins to a new contract, confirmed Thursday by CBS Sports Insider Jonathan Jones. This move sets him up to guide their presumed number one overall draft pick for Nando Mendoza and Cousins might even snag the starting gig early on, while the rookie builds experience. New head coach Clint Kubiak, who coached Cousins for three seasons in Minnesota, made it clear he likes young quarterbacks to sit and learn first. He figures it's best for them to watch a pro run the show before jumping in, though sometimes rookies have to play right away. Fans and analysts see this as smart depth for the Raiders, with Cousins bringing 14 years in the league and 10 as a starter. He started as a back up to Robert Griffin III in Washington, then held down Jaws with the Vikings for six years before heading to Atlanta. In Atlanta, Cousins tore his Achilles in his last Minnesota year, signed big there, struggled

1:04early, got benched for Michael Penix Jr. then backed. Him up before stepping in after Penix's knee issue. Over 10 games and eight starts last season, he hit 61.7% of passes for 6.4 yards each, with 10 touchdowns and 5 picks. Now Cousins lands in Vegas ready to mentor or start, giving the Raiders flexibility as they shape their quarterback room around that top pick.