The 2026 NFL Draft is set to begin on Thursday night, and while it's not official yet, Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza is all but certain to be the No. 1 overall pick. That pick belongs to the Las Vegas Raiders, and the franchise has already started laying the ground work to build their team around Mendoza.
Indiana Football 2026 NFL Draft tracker: Where every Hoosier lands
Landing in Las Vegas means that Mendoza will be playing under the leadership of Tom Brady, at least in some way. The 7-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback is a minority owner of the franchise, and while his exact responsibilities are a bit unclear to the public, his presence is certainly noteworthy.
During his NFL Draft prep, Mendoza took a top-30 visit with the Raiders and had the chance to meet with Brady. After the visit, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback went on the Dan Patrick Show and revealed what his conversation with Brady sounded like.
Tom Brady says he will mentor Fernando Mendoza as he begins his NFL career
Mendoza revealed that Brady is going to push him and be a mentor to him as he begins his NFL career. In typical Mendoza fashion, the Hoosier gunslinger was also humble by saying Brady would mentor him only if he was selected by the franchise with the top overall pick.
"It was fantastic. It was fantastic. He gave me the message that he's going to push me, and he's not going to be all lovey-dovey. He's going to push me. And that if the Raiders draft me, he is going be a mentor, and wants to pour into whatever quarterback the Raiders have, whether it's me, whether they draft somebody else. Or, like, the Raiders also signed Kirk Cousins."Fernando Mendoza
"He gave me the message that he's going to push me, and he's not going to be all lovey-dovey – and that if the #Raiders draft me, he's going to be a mentor and wants to pour into whatever QB the Raiders have."
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) April 22, 2026
– @fernandomendoza on meeting Tom Brady & watching Kirk Cousins film pic.twitter.com/gMlue6ERXu
If any rookie QB could have their pick of a QB legend to learn from, the vast majority of them would probably said Tom Brady. Soon enough, Mendoza will get to live that reality.
It sure sounds like Brady wants to be involved in Mendoza's success from the jump. It remains to be seen just how often the pair will communicate, but hearing Brady's wishes to mentor Mendoza as he begins his NFL journey is a sign of great support. Even if they aren't working with one another on a day-to-day basis, having Brady in Mendoza's ear when needed figures to do wonders for Mendoza's early-career success in Las Vegas.
Not only have the Raiders made plenty of offseason moves to shore up the roster, but they added 14-year veteran Kirk Cousins to their QB room. Cousins figures to make for a great mentor as well, but receiving advice and support from Brady is as good as it gets.
Add us as a preferred source on Google