After missing out on the Heisman Trophy, the Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback, Diego Pavia, faced yet another setback. He remains undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft. In this situation, Deion Sanders found himself in trouble while rooting for Pavia.

Out of the 257 college athletes who’d declared for the 2026 NFL Draft, Pavia did not hear his name called out in Pittsburgh. As he now heads to the Baltimore Ravens' rookie camp, Deion dropped his support, asking him to stay strong. 

“@diegopavia02 “I BELIEVE IN YOU MY MAN! Stay strong and don’t let up. Show them what time it is and never allow them to forget. Much Love & God bless you. #PRIME," tweeted the Colorado Buffaloes head coach on April 25.

Deion knows the feeling of sitting on the undrafted roster. His son, Shilo, went undrafted in the 2025 NFL. Meanwhile, Shedeur faced a rough draft slide and fell to the fifth round, being the 144th overall pick.

Even though Pavia did not play under Deion in college, Coach Prime had tried to recruit him as a backup for his Shedeur at Jackson State.

Pavia began his college football career with New Mexico State and played there for two years. He then transferred to Vanderbilt in 2023 after rejecting Deion's offer.

While college performances and draft projections do not guarantee a spot in any of the 32 franchises, a reason why Pavia could not make it is because of his height.

Pavia was noted down as 6’0 on the Commodores’ website for years. But it was later revealed that he is 5 feet, 10 and one-eighth inches, which is widely regarded as the reason he was not drafted. 

While Pavia now sits in the undrafted list, Deion caught the heat from the fans.

Fans Voice Out Their Opinion After Deion Sanders’ Support

After Sanders shared the X post in Pavia’s favor, football fans reacted to it differently.

One comment pointed out the Buffs’ draft rate and Sanders’ unsuccessful season. “Dude who are you to say this, not even one guy got drafted from your own program. Where is a stay strong message for all your own boys!” After wrapping the 2025 season with a 3-9 record, there were no Colorado Buffaloes selected in the 2026 NFL Draft

Another fan pointed out how Deion kept silent about his own players who went undrafted. "Can’t tweet his own players though," the comment read. There are five Colorado Buffaloes players that have been signed as undrafted free agents

Among the undrafted agents is Kaidon Salter. "Way to congratulate Salter…… your QB last yr!" wrote Colorado alum, Matt McChesney. Salter landed a Titans rookie minicamp invite after going undrafted

Another pointed out how Pavia was not considered for his attitude. “Short, no arm, no accuracy, not a pocket passer, must scramble - the formula for so many failure QBs from the past.  It is as obvious as his bad attitude,” one wrote. His reaction after losing the Heisman wasn’t viewed positively and could have hurt his standing with NFL evaluators.

Despite Sanders' encouragement, Pavia's future remains unpredictable.

What do you think of Deion's support for Pavia? Share your thoughts.

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Written by

Akanksha Biradar

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar