The 2026 NFL Draft is just under three months away and there are quite a few quarterbacks who will be available for teams to consider. One of those quarterbacks is none other than Vanderbilt Commodores standout Diego Pavia.
Pavia became one of the most polarizing players in college football over the last couple of years. He helped lead Vanderbilt back to football relevancy, but there are many who doubt he can play at the professional level.
At this point in time, the clear-cut best quarterback in the class is Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. He’s expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the draft by the Las Vegas Raiders. Behind him, there are options like Ty Simpson and a lot of unproven players.
With that being said, Pavia has now received a very critical take from NFL Draft expert Todd McShay.
During a segment of “The Todd McShay Show,” McShay got brutally honest about his thoughts on Pavia. He doesn’t see a professional future for the young signal caller.
“I don’t think Diego Pavia can play quarterback in the NFL,” McShay said. “You watch him during team sessions and you watch him during some of the seven-on-seven stuff and there’s some fun things to watch, man. Arm angle changes, on the move, initial play breaks down…He just has unbelievable instincts. And I think that’s part of what made him so special at Vanderbilt and why they won all those games.”
McShay then revealed where he sees Pavia coming up short against other quarterback prospects.
“But when you watch him just like the one-on-ones, seven-on-sevens having to drive the ball, NFL throws…it’s not the same as the other guys.”
At the end of the day, Pavia is no stranger to being doubted. He’ll simply use McShay’s words as more motivation. However, he does have an uphill battle ahead of him to become a starting NFL quarterback.
Throughout the course of the 2025 college football season, Pavia put on a show once again. No one can take away the entertainment level he brings to a game.
He completed 70.6 percent of his pass attempts for 3,539 yards, 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions, while also running for 862 yards and 10 more touchdowns.
NFL teams will likely be intrigued by his playmaking ability later in the draft. That brings up the question, what round and which teams could make sense for Pavia?
There are some who believe he could be a third or fourth round pick. Others see him much more likely to slip to the sixth or seventh round. He’ll likely be drafted, but it could be a long draft for the Commodores’ lead man.
As for potential destinations in the draft, there are a few teams who stick out.
Teams like the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams, and Miami Dolphins could make sense. Perhaps a team like the Indianapolis Colts could take a flier on him.
Only time will tell, but Pavia’s name will be one of the most interesting to watch as the 2026 NFL Draft gets underway.
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Evan Massey Evan Massey is a sports reporter and analyst located in Indianapolis, Indiana who covers the NFL, NBA, MLB, WNBA, and college sports. He has been featured on many publications, including Newsweek, Athlon Sports, ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, Forbes, Bleacher Report, Sporting News, and many others. In his free time, Evan enjoys spending time with his wife and son. More about Evan Massey
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