Diego Pavia goes undrafted, UDFA watch
- Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia went unselected through all 257 picks of the 2026 NFL Draft, then accepted a Baltimore Ravens rookie minicamp invitation Sunday. - Pavia was the Heisman Trophy runner-up, threw for 3,539 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2025, and was projected by NFL.com as Round 7/PFA. - He became the first undrafted Heisman finalist since 2014, shifting his path from draft pick to tryout. (sports.yahoo.com)
Diego Pavia went undrafted Saturday, then accepted an invitation Sunday to the Baltimore Ravens’ rookie minicamp. (espn.com) (baltimoreravens.com) The 2026 NFL Draft ended after 257 selections without Pavia’s name being called. NFL.com had given the Vanderbilt quarterback a 5.95 grade and a Round 7/priority free agent projection. (nfl.com) Pavia’s 2025 season at Vanderbilt was productive by any measure: 3,539 passing yards, 29 touchdown passes, 70.6% completions, 862 rushing yards and 10 rushing scores. He also set school records for passing yards and passing touchdowns. (espn.com) (nfl.com) He finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up and won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award after a season that put Vanderbilt in the national conversation. NFL.com also listed him as a first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection and a second-team Associated Press All-American. (sports.yahoo.com) (nfl.com) The Ravens’ invite does not equal a contract. Rookie minicamp is a post-draft tryout setting where drafted players, signed undrafted free agents and invitees work in front of coaches before the wider offseason program. (espn.com) (baltimoreravens.com) Baltimore’s minicamp is scheduled for May 1-3, according to the Ravens. ESPN reported Pavia accepted the invite after the draft, giving him his first NFL opening this spring. (baltimoreravens.com) (espn.com) Pavia’s college path was unusual before draft weekend turned it again. He started at New Mexico Military Institute, transferred to New Mexico State, then followed coaches Jerry Kill and Tim Beck to Vanderbilt. (nfl.com) He also won a court injunction that let him return for the 2025 season, arguing junior-college years should not count the same toward National Collegiate Athletic Association eligibility. NFL.com said the NCAA later granted former junior-college players in his situation another year in 2025. (nfl.com) Yahoo Sports reported Pavia is the first Heisman finalist to go undrafted since Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch in 2014. That leaves Baltimore minicamp, not draft position, as the next checkpoint in his bid to reach an NFL roster. (sports.yahoo.com)
