Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, got another taste of NFL action on Thursday night in Las Vegas’ second preseason game. The game was also ESPN’s first NFL broadcast of the 2026-27 campaign, and the rookie gave the Worldwide Leader another memorable television interview.
Play-by-play announcer Joe Buck was surprised in the middle of the fourth quarter when the broadcast went live with an interview of the rookie from sideline reporter Laura Rutledge.
“Oh, no, we’re going to do it now,” Buck said. “Hi, Laura! Hi, Fernando!”
“Joe Buck says, ‘Hi,’” Rutledge told Mendoza.
Undeterred by an 80-yard pick-six he threw in the first quarter, the ever-polite Mendoza made sure to greet ESPN’s broadcast booth,
“Please tell Mr. Buck I say, ‘Hello,’” he told Rutledge.
“What about Mr. Aikman?” Rutledge asked, referring to color commentator Troy Aikman.
“Oh, of course,” Mendoza said, before throwing Buck some extra love. “I mean, he’s a legend. I think Mr. Buck needs some love, because Mr. Aikman is already, you know.”
The exchange drew chuckles from both Buck and Aikman, who made note of the young quarterback’s “unique” personality.
“You see, there it is. Back to Mr. Buck,” Buck said. “That’s the stuff. He is unique. And yeah, I’ll take that. We’ll take the love from Fernando Mendoza. And he says all the right things.”
“What a refreshing personality he is,” Aikman said. “And a guy that, I’m sure that I can speak for most of America, anyway, that’s easy to root for.”
After the game, Kyle Brandt broke down the different personalities that make “Nando” so unique.
“His personality and his interviews are better than the games,” Brandt told Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter. “And Scott, I’ve identified he’s got three personalities that he goes through, and counting. Okay, see if you can follow.
.@KyleBrandt breaks down the different versions of Fernando Mendoza pic.twitter.com/wMGqOk4ZCi
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 21, 2026
“So we’ve got— there’s C’EO Nando,’ who says things like, creating a dynamic ecosystem on the professional stage. That’s enough. You could just leave that alone. Yeah, but then there’s ‘TED Talk Nando,’ and that’s the one that Laura got tonight. And he said, ‘Learning isn’t always a straight line up,’ and he literally did the straight line up with his hand.
“Sure. And then you get to the grand finale, which is ‘9-year-old child Nando,’ which says things out of nowhere like, uh, ‘The Las Vegas Strip is the boogeyman,’ which is an incredibly endearing quote. A guy who dominated the Big Ten is afraid of the Bellagio, and that’s just like, I’m right there with him. But those are the 3 Nandos.”
‘Ted Talk Nando’ finished the game with 86 yards passing, going 8-for-15 through the air. Luckily for all three Nandos, the Raiders are taking a patient, mature approach to their development and seem content to let them learn behind veteran Kirk Cousins for as long as necessary to set them up for long-term success in the league.
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