Diego Pavia — 2026 Fantasy Outlook

Pavia's college journey covered three programs and four years before everything clicked. His first two seasons at New Mexico State produced 4,423 passing yards, 39 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions over 27 games, but his 57.9% completion rate pointed to real accuracy concerns. A transfer to Vanderbilt brought a more conservative role (176 passing yards per game, 20 touchdowns, and four interceptions), though he compensated with his legs throughout, rushing for 2,232 yards and 21 touchdowns on 461 carries over his first three college seasons.

His 2025 season at Vanderbilt was a different story entirely. A 70.6% completion rate, 3,529 passing yards, 29 touchdowns, and 9.4 yards per attempt signaled genuine growth, not just a system upgrade. He kept his rushing threat alive (167/862/10) and delivered two monster performances (400 combined yards with six touchdowns and 532 combined yards with six touchdowns), while closing his career with rushing touchdowns in seven straight games.

At 5'10" and 205 lbs., he arrives in the NFL undersized but not without tools. His throwing rhythm is natural and helps receivers time their routes, boosting his completion percentage in structured concepts. His weakness is on the outside vs. man coverage, where he leans on touch and arc rather than velocity. This combination could invite defensive mistakes at the next level if relied upon too heavily. Vanderbilt kept him primarily in the shotgun with a pocket-first approach, and his vision and football IQ show up in how he processes before pulling it down to run.

He is a compelling fit for Baltimore. Pavia's dual-threat profile would allow the Ravens to run a near-identical system to Lamar Jackson's, and his ceiling projects well above what Tyler Huntley offered as a backup option, but winning in the NFL takes development time and experience.