It may be the heart of the offseason, but high-end football players still need to put in the work. When it comes to former Indiana Hoosiers superstar quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the No. 1 overall pick by the Las Vegas Raiders went to work with someone who is from his neck of the woods. That would be Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who is about to embark on his junior season.
Here is a clip of them working out together down in their native Miami. Should we connect the dots?
Best in the game. Fernando and Jeremiah put in WORK 👀🍿 @fernandomendoza @Jermiah_Smith1
— 305 Sports (@305Sportss) May 6, 2026
Raiders QB Fernando Mendoza worked out with Jeremiah Smith at @SlyJohnson3. Both are Miami natives. pic.twitter.com/BkC94tw0jD
Mendoza may be the catalyst for real change in Las Vegas, just like he was in Bloomington. However, the NFL can be unforgiving. This is untrodden territory for him. For as improved as the Raiders may be this fall, the chances of them going worst-to-first in the deep AFC West are not all that great. Could the Raiders end up taking Smith inside the top five of the 2027 NFL Draft? That could be something...
Just imagine a pair of former Big Ten rivals uniting to help reclaim this sunken AFC West franchise.
Fernando Mendoza throwing to Jeremiah Smith has NFL fans dreaming
While not everybody is rooting for Mendoza to have great success in the NFL, he gets to play for a franchise that has Tom Brady in the building. For the time being, he gets to throw the football to the greatest tight end in college football history in Brock Bowers, as well as hand it off to the player who should have won the Heisman Trophy the year before him in Ashton Jeanty. There is a lot to like here.
Although there is a non-zero chance that Smith ends up being the No. 1 overall pick next spring, somebody is going to trade up to go get a quarterback. Whether it is Arch Manning, Dante Moore, Smith's Ohio State teammate Julian Sayin, or somebody else entirely remains to be seen. In the event that Smith is not one of the first few players taken, the Raiders must do whatever it takes to draft him.
Think about this for a few seconds. If the greatest leader at the quarterback position since potentially Brady gets to throw to the most talented wide receiver since arguably Ja'Marr Chase, that would be tremendous news for the Silver and Black. Indiana and Ohio State fans may not agree on much, but they could be able to celebrate the Raiders doing work for seasons to come on future fall Sundays.
It is too perfect for it to actually happen, but Klint Kubiak and John Spytek should be all over this...
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