Sometimes it takes more than just talent and grit to be a lock in the NFL. Specifically, character. That’s part of what people believe may have left Diego Pavia out of the draft. And now, his friendship with former Heisman QB Johnny Manziel is adding more fuel to the fire. So, when Skip Bayless pointed out the complication of this relationship, it wasn’t subtle.  

“I’m pretty sure Johnny Manziel moved to Nashville? That’s Diego’s idol, and he’s been partying with Johnny,” Skip Bayless told The Arena: Gridiron. “You know what the league thinks of that. If there’s any doubt about you and you’re hanging with Manziel, ummm, no.” 

It’s not hard to see why some people are uneasy. A first-round pick in 2014, Johnny Manziel’s career has become the cautionary tale that refuses to fade away. His lifestyle often created tension with the Cleveland Browns. After a disappointing rookie season in 2015, he spent 10 weeks in rehab for alcohol and drug issues. 

Later that year, while recovering from a concussion, he reportedly flew to Las Vegas in disguise the night before a game and missed a medical check-in the next morning. These off-field controversies ultimately led to his release ahead of the 2016 season. That was the end of his NFL career. He later joined the CFL, but he couldn’t stick with any team for long, and his football career ended in 2022. 

Now, Diego Pavia, like Johnny Manziel once did, brings two questions into every room. Size and maturity. There’s no doubt about his talent, but the NFL has never just been about what you do between the lines. It’s about whether teams trust you when no one’s watching. Still, he doesn’t see Manziel as a warning but as a resource.

“He’s giving me what to look out for, what it’s like, how to stay in the process,” he said of Johnny Manziel at the combine. “And, you know, he’s given me some good advice, for sure. And he always reaches out, too, checks up on me, makes sure I’m good, and he just, like, he’s just a friend to me, you know? And so he’s giving 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 him.”

The NFL evaluates your risk level, and all these stories might have played a role in Diego Pavia’s draft slide. Because what he did at Vanderbilt should have made this whole conversation irrelevant. He led the Commodores to a 10-2 regular season with a Heisman runner-up finish. But it only got him a minicamp invite with the Baltimore Ravens, where he ultimately signed. 

That disconnect is why Skip Bayless and plenty of others pushed back so hard, although he is a supporter. He even argued months earlier that Diego Pavia deserved the Heisman over Fernando Mendoza “for his performance on the field, even if his swagger and edge rubbed some voters and viewers the wrong way.”

Diego Pavia didn’t really stay low ahead of the NFL Draft. Aside from his New York party, where he dissed Indiana after the Heisman loss, he was also seen partying in the Albuquerque nightclub, which questioned his reputation further. And Bayless isn’t the only one who’s concerned about his friendship with Johnny Manziel. 

Analyst questions Diego Pavia’s personality  

Dan Patrick didn’t even bother with subtlety. On his show, he put Diego Pavia’s draft slide as a message, not a mistake. If you’re not a can’t-miss prospect, professionalism is the baseline. And in his view, the QB didn’t clear it. He didn’t dance around the size issue either. Backup QBs, he pointed out, are rarely undersized. And more importantly, they’re rarely noticeable. 

The NFL doesn’t want its QB2 making headlines. And yes, Johnny Manziel’s shadow hangs over his observation. Not because he’s actively hurting Diego Pavia, but because he represents what happens when talent and discipline drift apart.

In the NFL, a backup quarterback is supposed to be invisible. You want a quiet, hardworking guy standing on the sidelines holding a clipboard, ready to step in during an emergency. You absolutely do not want your backup making headlines for throwing cash at late-night parties.

That is the harsh reality Dan Patrick pointed out. Manziel isn’t actively telling Pavia to fail, but simply being associated with him tells NFL owners that Pavia might bring unnecessary drama to the locker room.

“Football moves on quickly,” Patrick said. “Just as Johnny Manziel, it moves quickly. … But Diego Pavia has a personality, but he doesn’t have a personality that I want as my backup quarterback.”

Pavia now faces a hard choice. He can keep treating Manziel as a mentor and hope his undeniable talent on the Baltimore Ravens’ practice field is enough to make teams ignore the noise. Or, he can listen to the loud warnings from veterans like Bayless and Patrick.

The NFL does not wait around for players to grow up. If Pavia wants a lasting career, he might have to finally step out of Manziel’s shadow and walk the rest of this road alone.