Diego Pavia is the first Heisman finalist to go undrafted since 2014

Diego Pavia is confident that his size won’t stop him from succeeding as a quarterback in the NFL, but the NFL showed a lot more doubt about his future over the last three days.

Pavia was not one of the 257 players selected over the seven rounds of the 2026 draft. That makes him the first Heisman finalist to go undrafted since Jordan Lynch in 2014.

Pavia was the runner-up to Fernando Mendoza in the Heisman voting after a spectacular season for Vanderbilt. He was measured at just under 5-foot-10 at the Senior Bowl, however, and that would make him the shortest quarterback in a league that has long favored taller players at the position.

There’s been no report of Pavia agreeing to terms with a team as a free agent yet, but that is now the only path available for the start to his professional career.