Diego Pavia getting advice from Johnny Manziel ahead of 2026 NFL Draft

Jacob Camenker, USA TODAYFri, February 27, 2026 at 8:47 PM UTC

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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is hoping to impress in the lead-up to the 2026 NFL Draft and prove to the league's 32 teams he is worthy of being selected.

The 2025 SEC Offensive Player of the Year is getting advice from 2014 first-round pick Johnny Manziel as he navigates the pre-draft process.

Pavia elaborated on his relationship with Manziel – and the lessons the former Cleveland Browns quarterback was instilling in him – while meeting with reporters at the 2026 NFL Combine.

"He's given me what to look out for, what it's like, how to stay in the process," Pavia explained. "He's giving me some good advice for sure. He always reaches out, too, checks up on me [to] make sure I'm good."

1 / 0NFL mock draft: First-round projection going into the scouting combine1. Las Vegas Raiders – Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana

Manziel, like Pavia, was a smaller-sized quarterback who thrived while playing in the SEC. Manziel became the first-ever freshman to win the Heisman Trophy after starring during his 2012 season at Texas A&M. He earned the nickname "Johnny Football" because of his performance and showed enough to convince the Browns to select him with the 22nd pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

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Manziel never found his footing in Cleveland, posting a 2-6 record across eight starts and completing 57% of his passes for 1,675 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. He was cut at the start of the 2016 NFL offseason, marking the end of his NFL career.

Pavia has earned a similar reputation to Manziel as a lightning rod. Some of that stemmed from an Instagram post disparaging the Heisman Trophy voters after he finished as the runner-up behind Fernando Mendoza.

Meanwhile, talent evaluators have wondered whether Pavia's 5-9, 198-pound frame will impede him from finding success at the NFL level.

Despite this, Pavia acknowledge he remains confident he can be a quality NFL quarterback. And as he seeks to prove that, he is happy to have Manziel in his corner.

"He's just a friend to me," Pavia said of Manziel. "He's given me some mentorship. He's been around me. He's been around my family. He's just a great person for those that really don't know."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFL draft prospect Diego Pavia explains bond with Johnny Manziel

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