Cal Bears NFL Draft Profile: Tight End Stephen Anderson

From walk-on to playmaker, Cal’s Stephen Anderson has become a legitimate NFL tight end prospect.

As the 2016 NFL Draft approaches, Golden Gate Sports will profile some of the California Golden Bears’ potential draft picks. Everyone knows about quarterback Jared Goff, who declared for the draft a year early and will almost certainly be one of the first few players off the board when the 81st annual draft kicks off on April 28th. But the Bears, who finished 8-5 this past season and beat Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl, have other intriguing prospects. The third profiled here is tight end Stephen Anderson.

The 6’3″, 230-pound Anderson was one of Goff’s favorite targets in his last two seasons at Cal, but it didn’t start out that way. Born in San Jose, California, Anderson was practically destined to go to that University of California, Berkeley. His parents, Steve and Charlene are both Cal alumni, as is his sister Brittany. But after a tremendous senior season at Piedmont High School, which saw Anderson catch 83 passes for 1,340 yards and 14 touchdowns, he wasn’t offered a scholarship by his dream school. Rather than lose focus and head elsewhere, Anderson pursued his dream and walked on at Cal in 2011.

Through his relentless work ethic and tireless efforts, Anderson earned his way on to the team, and redshirted for the 2011 season. He received his first taste of game action in 2012, but didn’t record any stats. He became an option in his 2013, his redshirt sophomore year, catching 14 passes for 125 yards in 10 games as the Cal pass offense became a force to be reckoned with, despite a 1-11 team record. After the season, Anderson was put on scholarship, which he presented to his tearful mother just before Christmas.

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At Cal, Anderson wasn’t a typical tight end, mostly due to the offense run by the Bears. In the spread look, Anderson typically lined up in the slot or on the outside, rather than lining up on the line of scrimmage just off tackle like a traditional tight end. In that role, Anderson became a very good receiver, acting as a security blanket for Goff. In third-and-short situations, or when defense brought extra pressure and the ball needed to be out quickly, Anderson was Goff’s most reliable target. He uses his soft hands to make tough catches, and has enough speed and shiftiness to make some moves in the open field. Those hands are what should make him especially attractive to NFL teams.

If he hopes to play at the next level, Anderson will have to stay in and block much more than he did at Cal. He was a serviceable blocker in college when called upon, but he is fairly smaller than the average NFL tight end, who stood at 6’4.5″ and weighed 252 pounds last season. In fact, his stature would make him one of the smallest tight ends in the league. His slight frame looks like is still has some room to add bulk, which would be beneficial to his NFL chances.

Next: Cal Bears Draft Profile: WR Kenny Lawler

Compared to the top tight end prospects in this draft, guys like Stanford’s Austin Hooper or Arkansas’ Hunter Henry, Anderson isn’t as complete as those guys. He’ll have some work to do to find his niche in the league, but with how hard he worked to make it at the college level, that shouldn’t be a problem.

Here is a highlight reel from Anderson’s final season at Cal:

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