He has also been a member of the Seattle Seahawks, Washington Football Team, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Buffalo Bills.

He chose to enroll at Kansas as part of then-head coach David Beaty's first recruiting class.

[3] Due to the limited need of tight ends at Kansas and around the country, Sternberger transferred to Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.

[4] During his recruitment, then-Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher accepted the same position at Texas A&M.

Sternberger chose to commit to Texas A&M due to Fisher's tight end-heavy offense,[5] wide receivers coach Dameyune Craig's recruiting, and the opportunity to play in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

[10] He was named one of eight semi-finalists for the John Mackey Award, given to the nation's top collegiate tight end.

[12] Despite not being selected as a Mackey Award finalist, Sternberger received first-team all-SEC honors[13] and first-team All-America honors from the AP,[14] Athlon,[15] CBS,[16] Football Writers Association of America (FWAA),[17] Sporting News (SN),[18] SI,[19] and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF).

[21] Since Sternberger was recognized by at least two of the five NCAA-recognized All-America team selectors (AP, AFCA, FWAA, SN, and the WCFF), he became a consensus All-American.

Following his lone season at A&M, Sternberger decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and declare for the 2019 NFL draft.

[28] He scored his first NFL touchdown in the National Football Conference Championship against the San Francisco 49ers on an eight-yard reception from Aaron Rodgers in the 37–20 loss.

[39] On January 26, 2023, Sternberger signed with the Birmingham Stallions of the United States Football League (USFL).

He has a tattoo of him on his left arm in honor of a childhood friend, Alfonso Reynaga, who died at the age of 13 of brain cancer.