Vanderbilt product Diego Pavia finished second in the Heisman race this year. He led the Commodores to their first double-digit win season with 10 victories, while also helping the school achieve back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2012-13. Yet, many NFL heads, draft experts, and analysts believe Pavia might not even get drafted to the big league.
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The biggest issue analysts have found with the 23-year-old QB is his height. He was listed at Vanderbilt’s official website at 6 feet. But we know those measurements are often boosted, which became even clearer during the Heisman ceremony when he stood next to the other finalists: Jeremiyah Love (6’0″), Fernando Mendoza (6’5″), and Julian Sayin (6’1″).
We thought at the time it was the camera angle, but during the 2026 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., that doubt was cleared. Pavia was officially measured a little shorter, at 5’9″ and 7/8 inches. He’ll now officially become the shortest QB in the NFL since the merger (if he’s drafted), and that’s why many believe Pavia should not get picked by any of the 32 teams. But not Chase Daniel.
Daniel knows full well that Pavia is a polarizing figure, but he adds that Pavia’s also an absolute winner. The analyst then notes that Pavia was never an early pick, but to say he’s not even a third-day pick is wrong, he sincerely felt.
“Is he a polarizing figure? Sure. Is he a winner? Absolutely. Look at all the quarterbacks that’s short, right? How rarely are you throwing over people?” Daniel asked, before adding,
“I don’t get why people are so up in arms. Look, he was never gonna be a first overall pick. He was never gonna be a first-round pick. Why not take a waiver on him in the third round? Or the fourth round? Or the fifth round?”
Daniel also added that Pavia was superb in the Senior Bowl, and since the 2026 class is a short one, teams shouldn’t discount the guy because of his height. As Daniel asserts, at the end of the day, height isn’t the only intangible that makes a QB. It’s a list of things that do. And Pavia possesses most of them.
“He was the best quarterback in the Senior Bowl… This is a very little quarterback class… There’s a lot of backup-type guys. Why can’t he have a career like me? 14 years as a backup… I don’t understand the want to try and knock him for his height because what I see on the field is completely different. The dude’s a baller,” Daniel noted, continuing,
“You gotta have all the intangibles to be successful in the NFL as a quarterback. Yes, he’s gotta be able to throw. Yes, the height, okay, maybe it matters to some. How big are your hands? That doesn’t matter. Your heart, your poise, your determination, are you a leader of men? All things matter way more.”
I just don’t understand the discourse around Diego Pavia…we get so obsessed with measurable and forget the most important thing.
TAPE! Can he play? And does he have the right intangibles? pic.twitter.com/3zjctSvpf0
— Chase Daniel (@ChaseDaniel) February 1, 2026
We have to agree with Daniel here, because the shortest QB in the league right now, 5’10” Bryce Young, has already shown flashes of brilliance, leading his team to the Wild Card Round and giving a strong fight to the Super Bowl-contending LA Rams. And let’s not forget about Russell Wilson. What a career he had in Seattle at 5-foot-11. Perhaps Pavia could have a similar run. You never know.
