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Raiders hold Kirk Cousins, Maxx Crosby out of team drills after practice fight | Latest NFL News, Analysis & Updates | NFL.com

Kirk Cousins and Maxx Crosby were held out of team drills after a practice fight, giving rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza an opportunity to run the starting offense.

First seen Aug 08, 2026 · 8:30 PM UTC · last updated Aug 08 11:31 PM

Scoring Zone's Take

This one's more locker-room drama than fantasy catalyst, but there are threads worth tracking heading into your draft. Cousins and Crosby getting sidelined after a practice fight is a minor situational note for Crosby's dynasty value in defensive/IDP formats if any friction lingers, but it carries no direct offensive fantasy weight on its own. The real intrigue is Fernando Mendoza getting first-team reps in Cousins' absence — that's a notable camp signal for a rookie quarterback, and it's worth monitoring how the coaching staff talks about the competition as the preseason progresses. Don't overreact to one practice window, but flag it as a data point suggesting the door may be more open than assumed.

For Brock Bowers and Tre Tucker, there's no direct news here beyond who's throwing them the ball. If Mendoza's rookie-friendly, quick-game style ends up favoring the tight end and slot roles, Bowers' target floor stays strong regardless of who starts under center — he's still a locked-in early-round tight end target given his usage profile. Tucker's value is more volatile and tied to snap share and role clarity, so keep him as a speculative later-round flier rather than a priority add. Michael Mayer's stock is unaffected by this news; he remains a depth/handcuff tight end in Bowers' shadow.

Bottom line for draft prep: treat Cousins as the presumptive starter until reporting says otherwise, monitor Mendoza's practice reps as a developing story with only moderate signal strength, and keep Bowers' draft capital solid. No roster moves are warranted off this report alone — file it as a watch item, not an action item.

Raiders hold Kirk Cousins, Maxx Crosby out of team drills after practice fight

HENDERSON, Nev. -- Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins and defensive end Maxx Crosby were suspended from team drills at practice Saturday following their fight the day before, giving rookie QB Fernando Mendoza his first opportunity in training camp to run the starting offense.

“We have very clear expectations about how we want to practice, how you go about our business,” coach Klint Kubiak said in a statement. “We violated that yesterday, so we held those guys out. That’s all I’m going to say about it. We addressed it with the team and we’re moving on.”

Cousins and Crosby had to be separated by teammates after the fight. The 37-year-old quarterback appeared upset that Crosby tipped his pass, forcing an incompletion, and then charged the 6-foot-5, 256-pound defensive end, who is three inches taller and 42 pounds heavier.

The Raiders are off Sunday before returning Monday morning, so their starting quarterback and star pass rusher will compete against each other again, though, Kubiak hopes, without any punches.

With Cousins watching Saturday, Mendoza -- the Heisman Trophy winner at Indiana who was taken first overall in the NFL draft -- threw touchdown passes to tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer and wide receiver Tre Tucker.

He also had some misfires while facing the starting defense for the first time, but showed agility in eluding pressure to find open receivers.

“Fernando continues to improve, and the thing I think we’re very pleased about is from spring to the start of camp, there were some parts of this game we wanted him to improve upon and he has as we’ve added different layers and dimensions,” quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s not repeating mistakes, which is always a good thing. It’s a long process. We’re pleased with how he’s developing.”

Kubiak has said Mendoza, brought to Las Vegas to be the franchise quarterback, would be able to run the first-team offense at some point in camp.

The timing of getting that chance Saturday probably doesn’t hurt, given that the Raiders open their preseason schedule Thursday night when they host the Arizona Cardinals. Kubiak hasn’t made any announcements on how he plans to use his quarterbacks, but Mendoza probably will at least see the field early and possibly start.

Cousins likely will be the starter when the season begins, but even then, Kubiak has made no promises. The Raiders are expected to turn to Mendoza at some point this season.

“The visual and verbal communication he’s made, certainly the ability to take snaps under center, those are things we’ve seen him improve upon,” Sullivan said. “He’s going to continue to work on and we want him to still want him to be even better. But we’re pleased with where that’s at right now.”

Copyright Associated Press 2026

Coverage from Nfl Dot Com News · by Associated Press · Aug 08, 2026 · read original