Caden Sterns NFL Draft Prospect Report

Safety, Texas

Who are the sleepers for the 2021 NFL Draft? Well DraftDive is your place to find them. Welcome to the first of many articles looking into undervalued prospects for the 2021 NFL Draft. If you want to see who your team should target, then you’re in the right place. Let’s jump into the first edition of sleepers in the 2021 NFL Draft.

What is a sleeper

First let’s decide what a sleeper is. Is a sleeper solely a 7th rounder that plays well like last years Kamren Curl, or do they have to exceed all expectations and become the GOAT like the 199th pick of the 2000 draft? I think not! For me, a sleeper is a player that is being overlooked or undervalued. Even a potential 3rd rounder should be viewed as a sleeper if he vastly out performs those players taken ahead of him. For the purpose of this article let’s focus on players that are ranked a bit lower(PFF 150 or lower overall). I have decided to choose a few players who have really caught my eye while watching the film, one of which will probably be a deep sleeper that just has too much potential and pedigree for me to ignore.

Defense

I tend to believe defense wins championships and I believe Shaq Barrett and JPP recently proved that point. With that in mind, we will be looking at a few defensive sleepers here today. I’d like to focus on Texas Safety Caden Sterns, Texas A&M Linebacker Anthony Hines III, and BYU Defensive Tackle Khyiris Tonga. All three offer quality traits at the NFL Level but need a good system fit to truly surpass expectations. If the cards fall in their favor, we could be watching them play on Sunday for many years to come. First up is Caden Sterns.

Introduction

Caden is a victim of one of the biggest trends I’ve noticed the last few years in scouting circles. A player who shines early gets all the scouts climbing on his bandwagon only to dismiss him the following year when he doesn’t perform as well as expected. Did all that talent they were raving about just a few months ago get siphoned from his soul while he slept? I highly doubt it. I see evaluators ask what happened to his instincts? Why isn’t he performing at the level he did then? Well, let’s discuss that.

In 2018 as a true freshman he recorded 62 tackles and had 4 interceptions and the football world was set ablaze by his talents. Then, over the last two years he recorded similar tackle numbers. Though he only managed 1 interception over those seasons. So did he lose his instincts? Does a mother Lion suddenly forget to protect her cubs? Or can we attribute his lack of takeaways to scheme change or new coaching? I believe after watching the tape he is still a very instinctual player.

Breakdown

Texas played more two deep safety in 2018 in the film I watched, which allowed him to cover one half the field and he used his instincts and speed to his advantage. When he is left alone as a single deep safety he can’t cover as much ground. That being said, he does a great job reading and reacting to help stop the run and the underneath pass. He just can’t make it all the way to the outside throws from this position.

He is disciplined in his zone assignments and he can also align in man coverage with fairly fluid hips. I like his quick processing and aggressive nature in goal to go situations. Although slightly slim for his frame, I believe he can add 5-10 lbs of muscle with an NFL regiment and add more pop to his tackles. He is already willing and uses his arms to bring down ball carriers but a bit of bulk wouldn’t hurt as long as he keeps his elite quickness for the position.

Prediction

I see Caden as a steal where he is currently going in drafts. He can play at all levels and tackle from sideline to sideline as well as stay on field for zone and man concepts. If he is let loose in a 2 deep zone, I believe he can become a game changer under the right tutelage. I wouldn’t be surprised if we are talking about Caden Sterns as one of the best safeties in this draft, if not the best a few years from now. Sterns could be in a Julian Blackmon type situation but with a much higher ceiling.-Ken Noble

Introduction

Caden Sterns was an absolute stud after his freshman year. Sterns was 1st all Big 12 and the defensive freshman of the year. Sterns was hindered by an injury his sophomore year, though he still put in a decent performance. His junior year was another average year. Then he put up some solid numbers tackling, but wasn’t great against the pass.

Breakdown

Caden is stronger against the run than the pass, but he showed he could defend the pass his freshman year. I wouldn’t leave Sterns in man coverage, but he should be able to play in a zone scheme. He will be an immediate contributor in defending the run and could develop his coverage skills. He’s also got genetics, as his brother Jordan signed as an undrafted free agent with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Prediction

Sterns certainly seems like a case of untapped potential, with the right coaching maybe he becomes an Andrew Sendejo type safety. Grab him in the 4th round and coach him up.-Jonah Anderson