HOUSTON — After the Las Vegas Raiders’ joint practice with the Houston Texans on Tuesday, rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza said he’d be lying if there were plays he regretted from the session. Even if there were negatives, he said “I wish I didn’t have any of them back because it’s a growing experience, and it’s practice.” But the ever-positive Mendoza might lament some snaps from Thursday night.

Mendoza got his first NFL start, albeit preseason, against the Texans, an eventual 22-20 win. Head coach Klint Kubiak sat most of the Raiders’ starters, including Kirk Cousins. Mendoza’s first drive ended with his first interception, which Texans linebacker Wade Woodaz snatched and took back 80 yards for a pick six.

“The margins are so small,” Mendoza said postgame. “One tiny mistake can lead to catastrophe. So I want to make sure that I best serve my teammates and get better from these experiences.”

On the play, a first-down snap from Houston’s 24-yard line, Mendoza carried out a play-action fake and had one of his cleaner pockets of the night. Good coverage downfield forced the him to checkdown. As pressure broke through, Mendoza threw for Mike Washington Jr., seeming to believe the rookie running back would settle his route against zone coverage. Washington instead drifted to his right as Mendoza threw, allowing Woodaz to undercut and intercept. Mendoza chased Woodaz down the field, diving to try and prevent the score but coming up empty.

Mendoza said he felt like he should have thrown to fullback Connor Heyward in the flat, but passed him over in his progression for Washington.

“It was not a good throw,” Mendoza said. “We were not on the same page and it was an interception.”

The turnover was the lowlight of what, on the surface, looked to be a lackluster second outing for Mendoza. He finished 8-for-15 for 86 yards, no touchdowns and the interception. He was also sacked once and pressured six times, according to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, giving him a passer rating of 42.6.

But Mendoza’s stat line could have looked a lot better if not for two incompletions to fellow rookie Malik Benson. The quarterback’s favorite receiver in camp dropped an out route on third down that would have sprung for big yards late in the second quarter. Benson later had a pass poked out by Texans corner Tremon Smith.

“I think it’s plenty to clean up, plenty to get better at,” Kubiak said of Mendoza’s performance. “Plenty that we can do better for him as coaches, and plenty that he can learn from.”

Mendoza also had some sporadic highlights. Two plays before the pick he threw in rhythm to a leaping Jalen Nailor over the middle for a 22-yard gain. He also hit Benson down the left sideline for an 18-yard strike in the second quarter. But those plays were mixed in with incompletions affected by pressure, the Benson missed connections and short checkdowns.

The joint practice and game were valuable experiences for Mendoza, going up against one of the better defensive teams in the NFL. The rookie gleaned that he has a ways to go.

“I came away with that there’s a lot more learning to do, and that although maybe you had a lot of success at another level, this level is a whole step further.”

O’Connell plays the hero

Mendoza was subbed out after halftime, giving way to third-string veteran Aidan O’Connell to play the final two quarters.

O’Connell led three touchdown drives. The first ended with nice outside runs from Dylan Laube and Dare Ogunbowale that found the end zone. But O’Connell got to call his own number to win the game in the waning moments.

The fourth-year signal caller got the ball back on the Raiders’ 4-yard line with 1:37 left, trailing 20-16. O’Connell proceeded to throw five straight completions in just over a minute to bring Las Vegas to the Houston 34. Following a spike, O’Connell delivered his best ball of the night, a 33-yard strike over the middle to a leaping Brandon Johnson with less than 30 seconds left. With no timeouts, the Raiders rushed to the line and O’Connell, with help from an impromptu tush-push from Chris Myarick, took it across the goal line with 14 seconds left.

“It feels great,” O’Connell said. “I thought the team did a great job fighting until the end. Everybody was in it, we had encouragement even from the guys that weren’t playing. And then obviously the guys who were playing, finishing off like that was great.”

O’Connell has said that he wants to have a chance to start, whether that’s with the Raiders or elsewhere. A legitimate opportunity isn’t present in Las Vegas with Cousins and Mendoza in the fold, but the Raiders see value in the third quarterback, and performances like his final drive on Thursday could cause them to keep him around.

Defensive deficiencies

The Raiders defense had an uninspiring debut in their preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals. Kubiak said the performance was not good enough and that they had to improve. However, only small strides were made against the Texans on Thursday.

Stopping the run continues to be an issue. The Raiders allowed 37 rushing yards to Woody Marks on the opening drive, including a 20-yard touchdown scamper during which he trucked multiple defenders on his way to the score. Things shored up thereafter, as the Texans ended up rushing for just 3.1 yards per carry, but Houston’s rushing attack was shouldered by undrafted rookie Noah Whittington and journeyman veteran Owen Wright the rest of the night.

Kubiak said he felt the run defense did a good job and took a big step forward. That impression is likely based on the overall performance, not necessarily the opening drive, which was a closer simulation of a regular-season game.

However, the Raiders’ young secondary did look better in Houston than they did during a discouraging Week 1 performance. C.J. Stroud and Davis Mills combined to go 15-for-21 for 120 yards in the first half. Las Vegas rookies Treydan Stukes, Hezekiah Masses and Jermod McCoy all looked more composed in coverage, and undrafted rookie Devin Lafayette picked off Brett Rypien to secure the win.

“I thought the coverage was sticky today,” Kubiak said. “This next game, we just can’t get these young guys enough reps because they’re all gonna be a part of us, a part of winning games this year.”

Washington winning opportunities

Kubiak has said he wants to give Ashton Jeanty a workload similar to that of 49ers star Christian McCaffrey, keeping one of the team’s most potent weapons on the field. But Mike Washington Jr. might give him reason to re-think those plans.

The fourth-round rookie had another impressive night, following up on a strong debut last week. He led the game with 56 rushing yards on nine carries, buoyed by an impressive 33-yard scamper in the first quarter. He also had a pair of nine-yard catches and a demolition of Texans linebacker Jamal Hill on a tough 3-yard run.

“I see a very talented young man with a bright future ahead of him that is extremely humble and hardworking,” Kubiak said of Washington. “So if he just keeps that mindset, he’ll keep getting better. He has plenty that he needs to improve on, and he knows that.”

When asked if Washington’s performances are going to get him more chances to see the field as a rookie, Kubiak hinted that Washington has done enough as a runner to earn his shots. But there are other areas where the Raiders still want to see him grow.

“Guys are having success and they carve out roles and that’s where he’s headed,” Kubiak said. “Mike’s doing a great job running the ball. We’ve got to keep getting him better in all facets of his game.”