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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak revealed Tuesday that he plans to play all of the team's starters in the preseason opener. The Raiders open the preseason Thursday against the Arizona Cardinals at Allegiant Stadium, pitting two first-time head coaches and elite offensive minds against each other in Kubiak and Arizona's Mike LaFleur.
With that decision, Raiders fans will get their first look at veteran Kirk Cousins in the silver and black in live NFL action. Kubiak announced ahead of training camp that Cousins would start over No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza. But that doesn't mean Mendoza won't see the field Thursday — Kubiak said the Heisman winner "will get plenty of reps" and views the opener as a valuable development opportunity.
"Look forward to seeing him out there with his teammates," Kubiak said. "A lot of guys that we need to evaluate, but he'll get plenty of reps."
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On his plan for the starters, Kubiak added: "We do have a plan for those guys and how many snaps or series we'd like to see them go ... No need for everyone else to know it, but we're going to have a lot of guys play in this game. We need to evaluate the whole roster."
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There's plenty of hype in Las Vegas surrounding Kubiak's new offensive system — which helped the Seahawks win a Super Bowl last season — along with the additions of national champion Mendoza and 2024 Heisman runner-up Ashton Jeanty, not to mention All-Pro tight end Brock Bowers. The Raiders still have Maxx Crosby and bolstered their defense this offseason, adding edge rusher Kwity Paye, linebackers Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker, and cornerback Taron Johnson.
Cousins remains a capable starter who can keep the team competitive while Mendoza adjusts to NFL speed, and the Raiders appear in no rush to thrust him into the spotlight. Still, Thursday's preseason matchup against the Cardinals will give fans their first real look at how Mendoza has meshed with the new offensive scheme and his teammates so far.
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