Raiders Open Door to Benching Kirk Cousins for Fernando Mendoza After Fourth Straight Loss

The Las Vegas Raiders are officially weighing a quarterback change. After a 35-21 home loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday dropped Las Vegas to 3-4, head coach Klint Kubiak refused to rule out benching veteran Kirk Cousins in favor of No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, saying the team is “thinking about everything” as it tries to stop a four-game losing streak.

For newer fans, here is the short version. Las Vegas started the season 3-0, then lost four in a row. Cousins, a veteran signed in the offseason, has been the starter all year, while Mendoza, the Heisman winner and top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, has been waiting behind him. Next up is a Week 8 road game against the New York Jets, and a possible quarterback switch is now the biggest storyline in Las Vegas.

What Kubiak Said and What the Numbers Show

“We have to go watch the film,” Kubiak said after the loss. “I think at this point, we’re thinking about everything to fix our problems, how to fix our issues in the red zone, in the third quarter, personnel and scheme. We’ve got to talk about all of it.” His answer pointed to problems across the whole team rather than one position, and he has said Cousins remains the starter, but that “if Fernando’s number is called we have confidence in him.”

The game got away from Las Vegas early. The Rams led 28-6 at halftime, with Matthew Stafford throwing three first-half touchdown passes. Cousins went 12-of-20 for 95 yards in the first half, then rallied in the fourth quarter with touchdown passes to Tre Tucker (37 yards) and Ashton Jeanty (15 yards). He finished 26-of-44 for 295 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, a 94.4 passer rating on a 59.1 percent completion rate. The Rams blitzed him on 29.2 percent of his dropbacks, sacked him twice and pressured him 19 times.

Cousins’ season totals are strong. Through seven games he has 1,877 passing yards, a league-leading 16 touchdown passes and five interceptions. The concern is results and accuracy: he has completed less than 60 percent of his throws in three of the last four games, and the team has lost all four.

Cousins addressed the situation directly. Echoing what he said when he signed in April, he said that if he is not the best option, he does not want to be out there either. “I want the football team to have the best chance to win games,” he said. He also said Mendoza has a promising future.

Mendoza has appeared in just one game as a rookie. He made his NFL debut in the fourth quarter of the Week 5 loss to the New England Patriots, completing 6 of 8 passes for 48 yards, and he also saw late action in Sunday’s blowout. Any decision could surface as early as Wednesday, when the Raiders begin preparing for the Jets.

The Betting Angle: Jets Line, Totals and Playoff Odds

If you are new to betting, a point spread is the margin a team is expected to win or lose by, and a total (or over/under) is the combined points both teams are expected to score. Those numbers are the best way to see how the market views the quarterback question.

The Raiders-Jets line has been tight and has moved around. One early opening number had the Jets as 1.5-point home favorites with a total of 44.5. Other early lines flipped Las Vegas to a 1.5-point road favorite with a total of 42.5, up a point from 41.5, a move CBS Sports tied to the Jets’ Week 7 loss to the previously winless Dolphins. Lines vary by book and by when they were captured, but in every case the game is close to a pick-em, and a confirmed quarterback change could shift it.

Some trends add context. The Jets are 4-2-1 against the spread this season, and the Raiders are 2-1 against the spread on the road, though this would be their first time as a road favorite. The over is 5-2 in Raiders games this season, a reminder that Cousins’ offense has been productive even while the team keeps losing.

The bigger market impact is the season-long picture. Kalshi’s prediction market had the Raiders at 14 percent to make the playoffs and 2 percent to win the AFC West at last check, and a model fit to Kalshi win totals put their average final win total near 7.2. That same model estimated Cousins is worth roughly 4.7 points per game more than Mendoza, exactly the kind of gap bettors weigh if a switch is announced.

What to watch next: Wednesday’s practice reports and any official word on the starter, since a quarterback change typically moves spreads and player props quickly. The NFL trade deadline on Nov. 10 at 4 p.m. ET could also shape how the Raiders approach the rest of the season. Lines can change at any time, so treat these numbers as a snapshot rather than a final price.