Ex-Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia handed dream NFL contract by the Baltimore Ravens after his draft disaster
Former Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is reportedly signing a three-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens after becoming the first Heisman Trophy candidate since 2014 to go undrafted.
He was supposed to try out for the Ravens this weekend, but the team went ahead and signed him anyway, according to ESPN. It’s unclear how much guaranteed money, if any, Pavia will receive.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Ravens spokespeople for confirmation.
Pavia’s deal does not ensure he will be on an NFL roster when the season starts this fall. Baltimore can still waive him with little-to-no penalty, depending on the specifics of his contract, so he will still need to make the Ravens out of training camp.
He was brutally snubbed at the 2026 NFL Draft and his humiliating week took another twist when bizarre footage of him at a New Mexico strip club surfaced.
The 24-year-old New Mexico native was seen with a wad of cash in the strip-club clip, which was reportedly filmed on March 8 at the Knockouts Gentlemen’s Club in Albuquerque.
Former Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia is reportedly signing a three-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens after becoming the first Heisman Trophy candidate since 2014 to go undrafted
According to TMZ, one source revealed that ‘all of the money’ seen on stage in the footage came from Pavia, who reportedly stayed at the club until 5am that night.
It’s not the first time that Pavia has sparked controversy over a club appearance, after previously doing so in the days that followed his Heisman Trophy heartbreak.
After being snubbed for the award, the former Vanderbilt star initially re-posted an Instagram story of himself and his offensive line captioned ‘F-ALL THE VOTERS, BUT…..FAMILY FOR LIFE.’
Pavia threw for 3,539 yards and 29 touchdowns during a breakout 2025 season.
Furthermore, he was a four-year starter across two programs, completing 62.2 percent of his passes in 53 career games for 10,255 yards with 88 touchdowns and 27 interceptions.
Yet, there had been concerns over his size with Pavia only standing at 5ft 10in and 203 pounds. He also has a history of wild antics, like holding a ‘F*** INDIANA’ sign at a New York club after losing the Heisman vote to Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
New Ravens coach Jesse Minter already has two-time MVP Lamar Jackson entrenched as his starting quarterback.
After Jackson, the team also has veteran backup Tyler Huntley, but that’s as afar as the depth chart goes, meaning Pavia could catch on as a third stringer in Baltimore.
