The Las Vegas Raiders are poised to draft Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza on Thursday night in Pittsburgh, but he will not be there to soak in the moment.

Why is that? Well, Mendoza wants to celebrate the special moment of going first overall in the 2026 NFL Draft with his family and those special to him in Miami.

Mendoza said his family wanted to hold the celebration at home; he added that the logistics made it easier to stay in Miami on Thursday before jetting off to presumably Vegas on Friday.

"I wanted to stay and make the memory with everybody who poured into my football journey," Mendoza told Rich Eisen. "Mentors, coaches, family, friends. To be able to share that moment with all of them is going to be the best memory that I can make, rather than limiting it to 10 or 12 people in Pittsburgh."

Fernando Mendoza shares with @richeisen why he will be celebrating the NFL draft at home and not in Pittsburgh. (via @richeisenshow) pic.twitter.com/Q503CS4woJ

That makes perfect sense to us. Mendoza will still have his big moment, just in friendly confines.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why isn't Fernando Mendoza attending the 2026 NFL Draft? See his cool reason