Jace

Sternberger

Logan Thomas was sidelined at Wednesday’s practice while dealing with a hamstring injury. He was previously reported to be week-to-week because of the issue. With Ricky Seals-Jones, John Bates, and Sammis Reyes as the backups to Thomas, a signing was inevitable. Sternberger was a third-round pick with the Packers but never made an impact. His addition could signal that Thomas is headed for injured reserve, as the Football team now has five tight ends rostered.

Sternberger opened the year serving a two-game suspension but will be available to play immediately if he lands elsewhere. The former third-round pick finishes his stint in Green Bay with 12 receptions for 114 yards and one score. He’ll have the choice to join Green Bay’s practice squad if he passes through waivers unclaimed.

Sternberger will miss games against the Saints and Lions before being eligible to return against the 49ers. It’s another blow for a 2019 third-rounder who was easily hurdled on the depth chart by Robert Tonyan last season. Sternberger did catch the first 12 passes of his career last year, but it’s difficult to see him making a meaningful Dynasty league move during what will be his age-25 campaign.

Sternberger has been in the concussion protocol. Also inactive for the Packers are QB Jordan Love, CB Josh Jackson, LB Jonathan Garvin and G Simon Stepaniak. The Packers are one of the league’s healthier teams as we near the playoffs.

Sternberger missed Week 14 with concussion symptoms and looks likely to miss Week 15 against Carolina. Last week, Robert Tonyan played 61 percent of the team’s offensive snaps and saw five targets while Marcedes Lewis played 57 percent of the snaps and had one target.

Sternberger was not going to be a fantasy option with Robert Tonyan healthy. Tonyan could see a bump in snaps and (maybe) targets this week against Detroit with Sternberger sidelined. Sternberger this year has played 25 percent of the Packers’ offensive snaps to Tonyan’s 65 percent.

Deguara, after looking like the main pass catching tight end for Green Bay in Week 1, has been inactive for two straight weeks. That’s opened up opportunity for Jace Sternberger and Robert Tonyan, who last week led all Packers tight ends with a 63 percent snap rate. Tonyan saw five targets and caught a touchdown against the Saints. While he doesn’t have a lock on tight end pass catching duties, Tonyan shapes up as a fine option in tight end premium leagues this week against Atlanta if Deguara is out.

Sophomore Jace Sternberger simply isn’t ready after catching just three passes as a rookie and spending part of camp on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Tonyan has 14 catches for 177 yards and two scores over the last two seasons while flashing in the preseasons at times. With Jimmy Graham now in Chicago, his departure opened 60 targets from last year. Tonyan could have some spiked weeks as an athletic former college wideout.

That means Jace Sternberger, the Packers’ second-round pick last season, isn’t a lock for the starting job. Sternberger earned that high draft investment at Texas A&M as a vertical threat, but it didn’t translate at all as a rookie in 2019. He goose egged in the box score while backing up the ghost of Jimmy Graham, and the coaching staff hasn’t put out the normal hype pieces in press conferences early in the 2020 training camp. Sternberger is more of a TE3 flier than someone to bet on as a TE2 right now. Perhaps that changes in a few weeks.

You don’t have to be a reporter or “expert” to come to this conclusion, but it is confirmation that the Packers are happy with where the second-year third-rounder is at after an ankle injury derailed his rookie campaign. Sternberger caught zero regular season passes before snagging three balls in the postseason. A Dallas Clark-type talent entering the league, Sternberger will be old for a second-year pro (24), especially one who made just eight appearances as a rookie. Nevertheless, the Packers’ dearth of reliable pass-catching options means Sternberger could carve out a fantasy-relevant role.