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Jace Sternberger TE Prospect


soulman

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Jace Sternberger is a perfect tight end for Matt Nagy

The Chicago Bears have not shown much interest in a tight end, but have looked into Jace Sternberger from Texas A&M

One of the first things that Matt Nagy stressed upon his arrival in Chicago was the addition of Trey Burton. He was very particular about his tight end usage and urged the bears to walk into 2018 with three tight ends who could perform three separate roles.

By the end of the year, Dion Sims was hurt and Adam Shaheen had yet to take a big step forward. Nagy did not draft Shaheen and was relying on his only signing in Burton.

After letting Dion Sims go it was expected that the team would look into adding more to the tight end room, but hey have remained relatively quiet. However, while most people see that team going running back early, they could be completing their tight end group in round three with Jace Sternberger and waiting on running back until the middle rounds.

How Matt Nagy views tight ends

Matt Nagy likes to have three tight ends that he can interchange in the lineup with three different roles. He has a “U” tight end who helps identify coverages. An “F” tight end, who can stretch the seams as a pass catcher and a “Y” tight end who is an old school blocker.

Burton is a “U” tight end.

Jace Sternberger is an option as an “F” tight end. He is a refined route runner who has solid speed and understanding as a pass catcher. Take a look at the route below as he splits the seams for a big play.

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Sternberger is one of the more refined pass-catching options at the tight end position in this class. He lacks in his blocking refinement and while he is a seam splitter, and a smart route runner, he is not a high-end caliber tight end such as Adam Shaheen.

https://www.mockdraftable.com/player/jace-sternberger

Still, while Shaheen has yet to take a step forward into that premier “F” tight end who can take the top off, he has shown to be a more refined blocker than given credit for and has had an impact near the goal line. The drafting of Sternberger, who is not a strong blocking option could push Shaheen into a role that features his blocking more, which could be an overall positive in his game.

Due to his limitations as an overall tight end, and his lack of elite size and athleticism as a pass catcher Sternberger is likely to fall to 87. However, it tough to see him fall far outside the top 100. The Chicago Bears bringing in Sternberger may mean that they wait on running back, and look at a great tight end option who can jump in right away in the third round.

Edited by soulman
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As days pass I'm becoming more convinced that unless one or more of the higher ranked RBs falls to #87 we may find Pace thinking a TE like Sternberger or previously listed Josh Oliver is his BPA guy at that spot and he takes a RB in round four.

4 minutes ago, soulman said:

How Matt Nagy views tight ends

Matt Nagy likes to have three tight ends that he can interchange in the lineup with three different roles. He has a “U” tight end who helps identify coverages. An “F” tight end, who can stretch the seams as a pass catcher and a “Y” tight end who is an old school blocker.

Burton is definitely Nagy's "U" guy and it would seem fairly logical that Shaheen will step into the "Y" role but as a better receiver and red zone threat than most "Y" type TEs.  It's unlikely Braunecker can fill the "F" role because he's never shown any indication of it before.

So unless Braunecker becomes the "Y" and Shaheen the "F" we have a need for a specific type of TE prospect.  Personally I tend to prefer Oliver over Sternberger but knowing Pace he'll have several potential prospects of which Sternberger is one.

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A lot of people have Sternberger gone by 87 so I haven't really looked at him much. 

I am becoming a big Warring fan even though I view him as a project. 

1) He should be available at 87 or close to. Nice to want nice things, but if they are out of your price range what are you going to do. 

2) Guy is a stud athlete with a ton of upside. Asked to play football in college he had to google what a TE was.  Blocking is a skill that takes years of organized play to develop. He is already fairly good at it and more importantly he is willing. 

3) He's huge, but he moves more like a basketball player. People said that about Shaheen too because he played basketball, but Shaheen had basketball skills not fluid movement.  Warring has more of a long stride to him and he carries his weight very naturally with low body fat, he could actually add weight to his frame. He does however have that tall man thing where they dont like to get low on LOS or overly bend their knees. 

He could be a better Zach Miller in a few years, who better to teach him than Zach Miller.

I think if you want one of the better TE prospects they are all going to be gone before Bears pick 4th. 

Intriguing running backs will still be there all the way into 5th. 

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8 minutes ago, dll2000 said:

A lot of people have Sternberger gone by 87 so I haven't really looked at him much. 

I am becoming a big Warring fan even though I view him as a project. 

1) He should be available at 87 or close to. Nice to want nice things, but if they are out of your price range what are you going to do. 

2) Guy is a stud athlete with a ton of upside. Asked to play football in college he had to google what a TE was.  Blocking is a skill that takes years of organized play to develop. He is already fairly good at it and more importantly he is willing. 

3) He's huge, but he moves more like a basketball player. People said that about Shaheen too because he played basketball, but Shaheen had basketball skills not fluid movement.  Warring has more of a long stride to him and he carries his weight very naturally with low body fat, he could actually add weight to his frame. He does however have that tall man thing where they dont like to get low on LOS or overly bend their knees. 

He could be a better Zach Miller in a few years, who better to teach him than Zach Miller.

I think if you want one of the better TE prospects they are all going to be gone before Bears pick 4th. 

Intriguing running backs will still be there all the way into 5th. 

Warring is another prospect but the book on him had him going sooner than #87.

But as usual the closer to the draft we get the more things shift.  Some guys rise and other fall.

What seems fairly clear though is there will be viable TE prospects still on the board when we pick and a TE rather than a RB may be our pick at #87.

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9 hours ago, WindyCity said:

Dawson Knox

Jace Sternberger

Josh Oliver

Kahale Warring

 

One of those guys is probably going to be there.

Hard go pass on a weapon like those guys when we have 0 depth at the positon,

I agree and odds are only one of those guys (maybe) is going to be any good in 3 years.  Tricky stuff. 

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4 hours ago, dll2000 said:

I agree and odds are only one of those guys (maybe) is going to be any good in 3 years.  Tricky stuff. 

Can you truly say they don't have TE depth? It may not be great depth but how many teams do at TE? I think Shaheen stinks but I think Braunecker is better than an average #3 TE and Burton led the team (or close to it) in TD catches.

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13 hours ago, WindyCity said:

Dawson Knox

Jace Sternberger

Josh Oliver

Kahale Warring

 

One of those guys is probably going to be there.

Hard go pass on a weapon like those guys when we have 0 depth at the positon,

Are we giving up on Shaheen already? I always harped on the kid because I felt he was too heavy and uncoordinated (usually fell down after making receptions). He was 278 lbs at the combine, I'd much rather see him at 255, 260 and working on his flexibility.

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12 minutes ago, G08 said:

Are we giving up on Shaheen already? I always harped on the kid because I felt he was too heavy and uncoordinated (usually fell down after making receptions). He was 278 lbs at the combine, I'd much rather see him at 255, 260 and working on his flexibility.

Are we going to rely on him?

This is a compete for a Super Bowl season and I am not sure Shaheen is worth the risk. So, in a way I am giving up on him. If he plays well and we drafted someone then we can cut Burton and his 8 million salary in 2020.

If he continues to be injured and look like an OT running routes then we are protected and are a year ahead of developing a replacement.

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15 minutes ago, WindyCity said:

Are we going to rely on him?

This is a compete for a Super Bowl season and I am not sure Shaheen is worth the risk. So, in a way I am giving up on him. If he plays well and we drafted someone then we can cut Burton and his 8 million salary in 2020.

If he continues to be injured and look like an OT running routes then we are protected and are a year ahead of developing a replacement.

But at the risk of losing out on drafting someone like Trayveon Williams? That's a tough call for me, man.

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4 minutes ago, G08 said:

But at the risk of losing out on drafting someone like Trayveon Williams? That's a tough call for me, man.

I would be fine with a RB as well, but TE needs to be addressed.

Watch the playoff game. The Eagles did not even bother to cover Shaheen they ran LBs by him on their way to double team Cohen.

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7 minutes ago, WindyCity said:

I would be fine with a RB as well, but TE needs to be addressed.

Watch the playoff game. The Eagles did not even bother to cover Shaheen they ran LBs by him on their way to double team Cohen.

I still haven't been physically able to re-watch that game. I queue it up and then I'm like ugh no.

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Just now, G08 said:

I still haven't been physically able to re-watch that game. I queue it up and then I'm like ugh no.

It was on NFL Network last week.

Shaheen may as well have been an OLmen. Charles Leno would probably attract the same attention in coverage.

So, we have a #1 TE that has reliability issues. A #2 TE that teams do not bother to cover when he is not missing 50% of the games in his career. Our #3 TE is a special teams guy who works hard on offense.

For a TE focused offense that seems light.

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I know it sucks, but we have to look at the reality of Shaheen,

-He has missed 13/32 games.

-He has played in others too injured to contribute.

-He has worse stats in 2 years than Kevin White, and White played 4 games and was regarded as a Super Bust.

-He has never shown the ability to actually separate from NFL coverage because he is slow and lumbering.

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2 hours ago, G08 said:

Are we giving up on Shaheen already? I always harped on the kid because I felt he was too heavy and uncoordinated (usually fell down after making receptions). He was 278 lbs at the combine, I'd much rather see him at 255, 260 and working on his flexibility.

This is something I've wondered about as well.  The Bears list him at 270lbs and maybe 260lbs would be a better playing weight for him.

Coming from a Div III program he was always a guy who needed work and coaching to reach his ceiling and missing the bulk of 2018 hasn't helped with that.  When he did return last year it was obvious he was still a long way from being 100% healthy and in game shape.

I haven't given up on him but this year he has to remain healthy and show some significant progress as a receiver as well or he will approach bust status for a 2nd round pick.  But he deserves that chance because he does have great upside if he can find a way to reach it.

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