How did players on the 2014 All-NFL team rank in high school?
JJ Watt High School Football Highlights
National Signing Day marks the time of year when major colleges attempt to land the most 5-star and 4-star players they can to come up with the best signing class in the nation.
While Alabama, Southern California and Florida State top the current 247Sports Team Rankings for best recruiting class with an average rating of about 92 per player, there's another group that ranks way down the list with an average player rating of about 80 per player.
That group that resides near the bottom of the list is the Professional Writers Association All-NFL Team. Using the 247Sports Composite Player Ranking for each member of the 2014 All-NFL Team when they were in high school, it becomes apparent that high school ratings and projections don't always match future performance.
For instance, the All-NFL team includes just one player, DeMarco Murray of the Dallas Cowboys, who had a 5-star rating in high school. He was a top prospect at Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), running for 1,947 yards and 27 touchdowns as a senior.
The list does include seven 4-star players, but for the most part the team is made up of 3-star and 2-star players.
Such notables as J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans and Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers were 2-star products while Richard Sherman of the Seattle Seahawks and Darrelle Revis of the New England Patriots, the top two cornerbacks in the NFL, were 3-star players.
Then there is the case of Antonio Brown, the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver. A quarterback in high school, Brown does not have a composite ranking by 247Sports for his high school days at Norland (Miami).
There are several All-NFL players who did not fit into the 247Sports ranking system. Aaron Rodgers of Green Bay is listed as a 3-star product coming out of junior college at Butte College (Oroville, Calif.), but his high school ranking is not listed.
Additionally, Darren Sproles of the Philadelphia Eagles, Adam Vinatieri of the Indianapolis Colts and Matthew Slater of the New England Patriots do not have 247Sports Composite Rankings.
Following are the star rankings for each member of the All-NFL Team along with where he attended high school.
Professional Writers of America 2014 All-NFL Team
Offense
QB – Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers – Pleasant Valley (Chico, Calif.), no ranking
RB – Le'Veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers – Groveport-Madison (Groveport, Ohio), 3 stars
RB – DeMarco Murray, Dallas Cowboys – Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 5 stars
WR – Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers – Norland (Miami), 0 stars
WR – Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys – Lufkin (Texas), 4 stars
TE – Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots – Woodland Hills (Pittsburgh), 4 stars
T – Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys – Rancho Verde (Moreno Valley, Calif.), 4 stars
T – Joe Thomas, Cleveland Browns – Brookfield Central (Wis.), 4 stars
G – Josh Sitton, Green Bay Packers – Pensacola Catholic (Fla.), 2 stars
G – Marshal Yanda, Baltimore Ravens – Mason City (Iowa), 3 stars
C – Travis Frederick, Dallas Cowboys – Big Foot (Walworth, Wis.), 3 stars
Defense
DE – Mario Williams, Buffalo Bills – Richlands (N.C.), 4 stars
DE – J.J. Watt, Houston Texans – Pewaukee (Wis.), 2 stars*
DT – Marcell Dareus, Buffalo Bills – Huffman (Birmingham, Ala.), 4 stars
DT – Ndamukong Suh, Detroit Lions – Grant (Portland, Ore.), 4 stars
OLB – Justin Houston, Kansas City Chiefs – Statesboro (Ga.), 3 stars
OLB – Von Miller, Denver Broncos – DeSoto (Texas), 3 stars
MLB – Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers – St. Xavier (Cincinnati), 3 stars
CB – Darrelle Revis, New England Patriots – Aliquippa (Pa.), 3 stars
CB – Richard Sherman, Seattle Seahawks – Dominguez (Compton, Calif.), 3 stars
S – Earl Thomas, Seattle Seahawks – West Orange-Stark (Orange, Texas), 3 stars
S – Eric Weddle, San Diego Chargers – Alta Loma (Calif.), 2 stars
K – Adam Vinatieri, Indianapolis Colts – Rapid City Central (S.D.), no ranking
P – Pat McAfee, Indianapolis Colts – Plum (Pittsburgh), 2 stars
KR – Adam Jones, Cincinnati Bengals – Westlake (Atlanta), 2 stars
PR – Darren Sproles, Philadelphia Eagles – Olathe North (Kan.), no ranking
ST – Matthew Slater, New England Patriots – Servite (Anaheim, Calif.), no ranking
*Watt did not have a 247Sports ranking. He was given 2 stars by Rivals.
