Inside Diego Pavia's NFL Draft fall: How Vandy QB became first Heisman finalist to go undrafted since 2014

Last fall, Pavia led Vanderbilt to a 10-win regular season, including wins over four ranked opponents. In his final regular season game, Pavia totaled 433 yards and two touchdowns in a 45-24 rout of rival Tennessee in Neyland Stadium.

Despite all of those achievements, Pavia went undrafted in 2026 and is still waiting to sign as an undrafted free agent. Questions about his age, physical tools and poor judgment off the field were enough to push teams away.

Size and age were key factors

Two factors were working against Pavia beyond his control: size and age. While Vanderbilt officially listed Pavia at 6-foot, his combine measurement clocked in at a significantly smaller 5-9 7/8 inches. That immediately put Pavia behind the 8-ball just based on history.

In the modern era, the two smallest quarterbacks drafted were Kyler Murray and Bryce Young at 5-10 1/8 inches. Those players both displayed high-end physical traits and went No. 1 overall despite questions about size. In the entire history of the NFL Draft, short quarterbacks have been routinely overlooked. One of the most notable was Doug Flutie, listed at 5-foot-10, who was an 11th-round pick in 1985.

Pavia's size creates questions in a couple of areas. First, will he be able to see -- and throw -- over the gargantuan linemen at the NFL level? Second, there are durability concerns. How will he hold up when taking big hits from defensive linemen and linebackers significantly larger than him, especially as a player who likes to use his mobility?

Then, there is the age question. At 24 years old, Pavia is the same age as Caleb Williams and C.J. Stroud, players with multiple years of NFL experience. When a player like Pavia really breaks out later in his college career, NFL teams will always have questions about how his game will translate to the next level.

Off-field question marks

Pavia brought along concerns about his maturity entering the 2026 NFL Draft. Pavia was a brash player who relished getting under the skin of opponents and their fans, but his actions following the 2025 Heisman Trophy ceremony took things to another level.

After finishing second to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, Pavia was spotted in a New York club next to a sign that read, "F--- Indiana." He also posted a photo on Instagram with the caption, "F--- ALL THE VOTERS, BUT ... FAMILY FOR LIFE."

Pavia later apologized for that post on social media, saying, "I have much love and respect for the Heisman voters and the selection process, and I apologize for being disrespectful."

The questions about his maturity certainly came up in pre-draft interviews with teams, and they definitely came up during his media availability at the NFL Scouting Combine. At one point, Pavia joked that his frontal lobe was still developing.

"Yeah, [Vanderbilt] coach [Clark] Lea always preached that your frontal lobe isn't fully developed until you're 25," Pavia said. "I just turned 24, so I got like 360 more days to go."

Diego Pavia controversies post-Heisman ceremony

In an interview with CBS Sports, Pavia said people outside the locker room often mistake his bravado for arrogance. The Vanderbilt quarterback said his swagger is a result of the preparation he puts in throughout the week and in the offseason.

"I want them to know, and the future teammates that I do have, that, game on the line, I got you. Don't worry about it," Pavia said. "That's how I carry myself. I think people get caught up in my confidence for arrogance. But my confidence comes from my preparation of work that I put in in the offseason, the week of, just things like that. That's what boosts me to have that extra edge on Saturday."

Pavia has proved people wrong throughout his career, and he will likely use this NFL Draft snub as motivation when he lands with a team as a UDFA.