Former college football player Diego Pavia hit with ‘brutal truth’ during NFL Draft, sportscaster says

Sportscaster Dan Patrick said Monday that Heisman Trophy finalist Diego Pavia was given the “brutal truth” over the weekend when he went undrafted and received an invitation to the Baltimore Ravens’ camp.

Pavia became the first Heisman Trophy finalist in more than 10 years to go undrafted in the NFL Draft.

Patrick said on his show it was a “really clear” message from the NFL.

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“Diego Pavia was a Heisman Trophy finalist who didn’t get drafted. Now, there’s a couple of reasons why. He was very good in the SEC – that should stand out and that should make you smart and worthy. You should be drafted based on what you did. You did it for Vandy in the SEC. You can be good at other positions. You can be absorbed at quarterback, but you can’t be absorbed as a backup, but you can’t focus differently. You can be an elite talent and get away with that.

“The message from the NFL was really clear – if you’re not a promising prospect, training is not only important, it’s necessary, and that hurts Diego Pavia. Also, that he’s not a tall guy. Most of your backup quarterbacks, if you check, they’re not short quarterbacks. Diego Pavia may be 5-10, but you start looking ahead. You have Tebo meetings … Cam Newton, (Colin) Kaepernick, other examples of your backup quarterback being the biggest headline, or potentially the headline.”

Patrick pointed to Pavia’s friendship with Johnny Manziel and his scathing remarks about Fernando Mendoza on Heisman night as other reasons why Pavia was not drafted.

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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia runs the ball during a game against Louisiana State University at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 18, 2025. (Nicole Hester/ The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

“The ball moves fast. Like Johnny Manziel, it moves fast. … But Diego Pavia has personality, but he doesn’t have the personality that I want as my backup quarterback. I don’t think he’s ready to be an NFL starter. He’s not Doug Flutie. I mean, Doug Flutie was a 5-9 player, Healism is ready to be a Trophy, Healthback is a quarterback. to step in where needed, in fact, Flutie was ahead of his time.

“But Diego Pavia, personality, that’s who you are. You sell that personality. But I don’t buy that. Teams don’t buy that. Teams didn’t buy Shedeur Sanders.”

Patrick said NFL coaches have a hard enough time trying to win games without the headliners.

Patrick added that NFL teams tend to look for a linebacker who is seen and not heard from, or a player who doesn’t draw too much attention to himself.

“You’ve got to have a backup quarterback, maybe you don’t see a lot and that’s a good thing. If you’re one of the McDown brothers and you’re only there for 15 years, Chase Daniel, a good college career, you just want to make sure that guy is there when it happens,” he said.

Patrick said the truth about Pavia is that teams don’t want him to be a star, they want him to help a player who will start the game.

“And that was the sad truth that Diego Pavia was given away at the weekend. He wasn’t drafted.”

Pavia was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and had 3,539 passing yards and 29 touchdowns as he helped put the Commodores back on the map.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia talks with Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza as the quarterbacks run through the NFL scouting competition in Indianapolis on Feb. 28, 2026. (Michael Conroy/AP)

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Vanderbilt went 10-3 last season and nearly made the College Football Playoff.