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Las Vegas Raiders QB Fernando Mendoza.

After months of speculation, Fernando Mendoza is officially a member of the Las Vegas Raiders. The team selected him with the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

This was widely expected, and many fans who attended the draft already had their custom No. 15 Mendoza Raiders jerseys made. However, just because he wore No. 15 at Indiana didn’t mean he was going to wear it at the NFL level.

Luckily, those fans can rest easy. The Raiders revealed on social media that Mendoza will indeed wear No. 15 in the NFL.

The last quarterback to wear No. 15 for the Raiders was Kenny Pickett last season. Gardner Minshew wore the same number the year prior. Notably, Hall of Fame former Raiders head coach Tom Flores wore No. 15 when he was the quarterback for the team.

The most notable Raiders player this century to wear No. 15 was wide receiver Michael Crabtree. There isn’t too much history tied to that number, so Mendoza has a chance to make it iconic among the Raiders’ fan base. It’s fortunate for him that there won’t be any number drama, and he gets his preferred number right out of the gate. He has been wearing No. 15 since high school.

Mendoza ‘Ecstatic’ to Join Raiders

The Raiders have been a struggling franchise for a long time now, having not won a playoff game since 2002. It’s easy to see why a player like Mendoza might be less than thrilled about going to that situation.

However, things are looking different for the Raiders. They landed Klint Kubiak as head coach, who was one of the top candidates in the cycle, and they were huge spenders in free agency. For his part, Mendoza is very excited to be headed to Las Vegas.

“What a great organization, great legacy,” Mendoza told ESPN after he was drafted. “There’s so many teammates I’m looking forward to talking to — coaches, owners. I’m ecstatic for the opportunity.”

Mendoza was willing to play anywhere, but he was hoping it was going to be the Raiders that took him.

“Whatever team was going to select me would be a good fit, but deep down, in my heart I knew the Raiders are most likely going to be the best fit because of the coaching staff,” Mendoza said. “I think it really fits my play style great.”

John Spytek Talks Mendoza Pick

This could be a make-or-break pick for general manager John Spytek. If Mendoza isn’t the real deal, he could be fired in a few years. Fortunately, he’s very comfortable with the process he had in deciding that Mendoza was the right guy.

Spyek is very confident that the quarterback is the right fit for the Raiders.

“It’s a great scheme fit for us,” Spytek said of Mendoza. “He’s big. He can see downfield. He can see over the middle of the field. He can throw those balls. He’s athletic, so all the boots and the keepers that we like to run, he’ll do well with. He has a good arm. He can throw the ball all over the field wherever it needs to be, and he’s extremely accurate, which, whatever system you play in as a quarterback, is important.”