It’s been a protracted highway for tight finish Jace Sternberger. After spending time at three totally different packages throughout his faculty years, the previous third-round choose by the Inexperienced Bay Packers would go on to serve a suspension for a substance abuse violation in 2021 — which ultimately led to his launch from the Packers. Sternberger resurfaced with the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL this season and made essentially the most of his alternative.

On Saturday, those self same Stallions beat the Pittsburgh Maulers by a rating of 28-12 within the USFL title sport at Tom Benson Corridor of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio — the identical stadium that hosts the Corridor of Fame Recreation which kicks off the NFL’s preseason. The Stallions have now gained back-to-back championships within the two seasons because the USFL has relaunched.

Sternberger ended his 2023 marketing campaign as simply essentially the most prolific tight finish within the league. Between the common season and postseason, the previous Texas A&M product registered 644 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns. The receiving touchdowns mark led the complete league. Solely two USFL gamers, each receivers, had extra receiving yards than Sternberger: his teammate Davion Davis and former NFL first-round choose Corey Coleman.

The one different “tight finish” in Sternberger’s ballpark was New Orleans’ Sage Surratt, a transformed receiver who performs extra of a hybrid function than Sternberger’s true tight finish place. Surratt had 602 whole receiving yards over the common season and postseason however solely registered two touchdowns. Each Surratt and Sternberger are anticipated to get camp appears to be like from NFL groups this summer season after their performances within the USFL.

One other USFL participant to spotlight, from a Packers perspective, is Birmingham quarterback Alex McGough. Inexperienced Bay is skinny on the quarterback place, with fifth-round choose Sean Clifford and Danny Etling combating for the QB2 spot behind Jordan Love. Neither Clifford nor Etling have began knowledgeable soccer sport and Inexperienced Bay is cap-strapped, that means that if the Packers need some expertise of their quarterback room for Love’s first rodeo, the workforce might need to get it from the USFL expertise pool.

McGough, a former NFL draft choose, changed 2022 Stallions beginning quarterback J’Mar Smith early in 2023 after Smith was positioned on the injured reserve in April. McGough wound up beginning 9 of ten video games for Birmingham and accomplished 180-of-267 passes for two,104 yards, 20 passing touchdowns and 5 interceptions — ok for the common season USFL MVP award.

Within the postseason, McGough went supernova as he accomplished 39-of-56 passes for 552 yards (9.9 yards per try) for eight passing touchdowns and 0 interceptions. For perspective, the remainder of the league mixed solely posted 5 whole passing touchdowns throughout the playoffs.

Control each the place Sternberger and the Johnny Manziel-like McGough find yourself this summer season, as they’re prime candidates to go from spring league stars to NFL contributors.