Crosby offers advice to star Raiders rookie quarterback Mendoza

Las Vegas Raiders star pass rusher Maxx Crosby had his new QB Fernando Mendoza on his podcast this week and the seven-year veteran had some sage advice for the young starlet.

On this week’s episode of The Rush, Crosby advised Mendoza to stay “genuine” and true to himself, otherwise teammates and opponents will pick up on it quickly and give him a hard time over it. Crosby said that he’s learned personally that it’s better to be himself even if it means acting “off the wall sometimes.”

“If you’re not genuine, guys pick up on that real quick,” Crosby said. “College is different. You’re growing as a man, you’re trying to figure out who you are and evolve as a leader, and you’re still going to school. You’re just trying to figure out life and how to operate. But once you get to the league, everyone’s grown men. Dudes have full families. They have different types of motivations, and everyone’s coming from a different walk of life. So being genuine, you’ll never go wrong. And trust me, I’m a little weird too. I do a lot of (expletive). I’m not saying you’re weird, but I’m off the wall sometimes, and I’ll say some (expletive).”

Sage Advice

Raiders fans were certainly impressed by the advice Crosby gave and some wondered if he could be a mentor for Mendoza over the next few years:

“Maxx take this young man under your wings he is going to bring the Raiders back to the promise land. RN4L,” one user replied.

“I don’t wanna wait. I don’t wanna redshirt. I think Fernando is ready. Let’s go,” another declared.

“Great episode!!!” wrote a third.

Mendoza has the hopes and dreams of Las Vegas Raiders fans on him right now. He’s their first No. 1 overall draft pick since JaMarcus Russell and fans are certainly hoping that that’s where the similarities will end. 

Last season he had a campaign for the ages, leading the Indiana Hoosiers to a 16-0 national title run and winning the Heisman Trophy in the process.

The good news is, the last seven QBs to win the Heisman have all adapted nicely to life in the NFL. There’s a lot of reasons to be hopeful in Vegas right now.

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This story was originally published July 8, 2026 at 2:27 PM.