Tight end Jace Sternberger silencing doubters ahead of NFL draft

Just because one hears doesn’t mean one has to listen.

Jace Sternberger offered a not-so-subtle reminder of that on Tuesday after Texas A&M’s Pro Day.

The Aggies All-American tight end heard his doubters. He heard (or read) those who advised him to return to A&M for his senior season. He heard those who said the upcoming draft was saturated with tight ends. He heard that another year in college could improve his draft status. He heard that he needed to improve his blocking.

“I already knew that was the situation,” Sternberger said. “Blocking… I think I got more criticism from people on Twitter and social media than I did from some of these actual coaches.”

He heard it all. Of course, he didn’t listen. Instead, he just went to work and added 12 pounds of muscle to bulk up his frame to 6’4”, 253 pounds.

Had Sternberger, who started his collegiate career at Kansas and made a junior college stop before arriving at A&M, listened to advice, he’d probably have been wearing a coat-and-tie on Tuesday and sitting at a desk.

“I really feel like I know myself better than other people [do],” Sternberger said. “I’m not saying that in an arrogant way. But if I would have listened to people my whole life coming out of Kingfisher (Oklahoma), going to KU, leaving KU… My whole crazy story… If I had listened to people, I would probably be sitting in an office starting my job because I would have graduated from Kansas. I’ve got to where I’m at in life betting on myself.”

Sternberger trusted his instincts. And at least one expert on the subject said his instincts were correct.

New Orleans Saints Associate Head Coach Dan Campbell knows something about playing tight end. He starred at that position at A&M. Then, he played 11 years in the NFL as a hard-nosed, butt-kicking run blocker.

Campbell also caught 91 passes in his pro career. But that’s not even double the 48 Sternberger caught in his one season at A&M. Campbell said Sternberger’s ability to catch and run with the football is now a more valuable commodity in the NFL than his own blocking acumen was.

“He’s an athlete. I was just running through brick walls. That’s all I did,” Campbell said. “The game has changed so much now. Tight ends – you’ve got to have these guys that can work the middle of the field. Those are the ones that really have high production.

“You still need these guys that can block, just it’s not like it used to [be]. When I was coming out you better be able to block power. You better be 265 and you had to move guys. It’s changed a little bit. We just signed a game at the Saints, Jared Cook, who can help us there. But we need a young guy we can develop and can come out and help us.”

Sternberger is likely aware that Campbell wasn’t the receiver he is. Still, he was especially attentive to everything Campbell said when they had dinner on Monday night.

“Any time you get to work with someone who is doing the profession you dream of, and they’ve done it for a long time in the NFL, I feel like it’s hard as a player to ever question someone like that,” Sternberger said. "You’ve worked your whole life to do what they’re doing. How could you not listen to them or enjoy the moment?”

Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs

Jace Sternberger made countless big plays for the Aggies in 2018.

We enjoyed watching Sternberger work the middle of the field. We saw the touchdown against Alabama. We saw him reach the end zone twice against LSU. We saw him drag a South Carolina defender 20 yards after a catch.

NFL teams have seen it too. Sternberger has already met with the Arizona Cardinals and Cincinnati Bengals. He’s meeting with the Raiders on Wednesday. He’s working out for the Cowboys next week. He estimates he’ll be meeting with teams in a different state every day from April 1 through April 17 as NFL teams finalize their plans for the April 25-27 draft.

Sternberger will be drafted. The only question is when. 

ESPN Draft Analyst Mel Kiper thinks three tight ends will be selected in the first round. He’s projecting Iowa’s T.J. Hackenson to Denver, Iowa’s Noah Fan to Green Bay and Alabama’s Irv Smith to New England.

Other analysts have ranked Stanford’s Kaden Smith, UCLA’s Caleb Wilson, LSU’s Foster Moreau and even Utah State’s Dax Raymond ahead of Sternberger.

Sternberger doesn’t care about projections. He didn’t care that he was projected as a three-star prospect out of junior college or that he was a three-star prospect out of Kingfisher High School when he signed with Kansas in 2015.

Those rankings would not have projected he would be an All-American or an NFL prospect. So, why should he care if he’s not projected to be a first round selection?

“I never give projections,” he said. “Same way in the season. I never projected any wins or losses. But I definitely prepared myself and set myself up good.”

Yeah, Sternberger heard the doubters and advisers. He listened to his own heart. It hasn’t been wrong yet.