The Las Vegas Raiders getting off to a 3-0 start this season behind veteran Kirk Cousins was a pleasant surprise. It was also a shock to the system that led to many people wondering if the Raiders and head coach Klint Kubiak were correct with No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza and keeping him sidelined as the starter. But after three straight losses and falling behind quickly to the Rams in Week 7, that should no longer be the case.

It seems quite apparent that the Raiders are better than expected but are still not a playoff team in the loaded AFC this season. And we're reaching a point quickly where gained experience for Mendoza is going to pay off more than what Cousins is providing.

Fernando Mendoza fits the Raiders' timeline better than Kirk Cousins

Make no mistake, a move to Mendoza for the Raiders wouldn't be about Cousins performing badly overall. He entered Week 7 with the sixth-most passing yards in the NFL (1,582) along with 14 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He's turned back the clock in a real way after what was a disastrous and brief tenure with the Falcons.

At the same time, Cousins' production hasn't been fruitful for Vegas against better competition. Those opening three wins came against the one-win Dolphins, winless Chargers and two-win Saints. It's more telling that they then lost to the Chiefs, Patriots and Bills — three pretty surefire playoff teams — in the following three games and then fell down big to the Rams.

While the Jets are next up on the schedule, the Raiders face the 49ers, Seahawks and Broncos in teh following three games, and the matchup after that with the Browns is no cakewalk either based on what we've seen. There's a very real chance that the Raiders are en route to, at best, a 4-8 start this season. And at that point, why would Cousins be the starting quarterback instead of Mendoza?

Cousins was brought in to be a stopgap quarterback. Mendoza was drafted to be the future. When there was hope that the Raiders roster might be in position to compete for a postseason berth, it made sense to keep riding with the veteran option. Now that it's becoming clearer that's not a viable possibility, though, they need to start giving Mendoza the valuable game reps to jumpstart his development.

That's not to say that Mendoza won't have some growing pains and will even be better than Cousins. There's no way to confidently predict that just yet. However, it is to say that the Raiders should quickly make an intentional pivot with what they're playing for this season, namely giving Mendoza the ball and trying to better set up this organization for the future.

If the season continues on the current trajectory, that would mean your hopeful franchise quarterback is getting game reps to expedite the development process and garner rapport with the likes of Brock Bowers, Ashton Jeanty and even Tre Tucker for the offense moving forward while also setting up the Raiders for a better draft pick to start filling roster holes.

And if they were to make that move, Cousins could also help with that last part as well.

If the Raiders turn to Fernando Mendoza, trading Kirk Cousins makes sense

If the Raiders ultimately do land on the smart option of naming Mendoza the starter, they need to do so before the Nov. 10 trade deadline so that they can deal Cousins. Yes, there is a case to be made that keeping the veteran for depth on the roster would have some value for Las Vegas moving forward this season, the move to Mendoza is about the future — and that's what trading Cousins helps.

Given how good the veteran has looked this season with the Raiders, there should be plenty of potential suitors that would be willing to part with a mid-round pick for Cousins. Imagine a return to the Minnesota Vikings if Kyler Murray's struggles continue. What if there's an injury to a quarterback on a team that's in the playoff hunt? That's something that Vegas could take full advantage of.

The result would be more draft capital to build around Mendoza and for the future of the franchise. And again, that's the impetus behind naming Mendoza the starter and getting him reps at the helm of the offense in the first place.

Of course, trading Cousins wouldn't be 100 percent necessary, but it would be the smartest move on the table as a ripple effect from starting the No. 1 rookie. Whether the Raiders make any of this happen remains to be seen. But if you're looking just beyond the 2026 season, it's what's best for the organization moving forward if they're realistic about where this season is going to end up.