How Were the Packers' Rookies Rated as High School Football Prospects?

One interesting factor to note in looking into an NFL rookie's background is how highly-recruited he was coming out of high school. Was he a 5-star guy who had offers from every major school across the country, or did he start his college career as a walk-on and worked his way up to earning a scholarship midway a few years later?

The Green Bay Packers' 2014 Draft class has players with each of those types of backgrounds, and everything in between. We looked at Rivals' high school football ratings for this examination of the recruiting background for each Packers rookie.

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix: 5 stars

It's no surprise that the Alabama Crimson Tide can get some of the best high school prospects in the country - having a string of three national titles in four years will do that for you. Growing up in Orlando, Florida, Ha Ha committed during the middle of that streak, in spring of 2010, and started for two years in Nick Saban's secondary.

Davante Adams: 2 stars

Fresno State isn't likely to compete for the top-level wideouts in the country, so they helped to develop a two-star player from Palo Alto into a second-round draft pick.

Khyri Thornton: 4 stars

A relatively highly-recruited tackle out of Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia, Thornton had offers from Arkansas, Clemson, and Florida State (to which he originally committed) but chose Southern Mississippi instead after initially failing to meet NCAA academic standards.

Richard Rodgers: 3 stars

Rivals ranked Rodgers as the 24th-best tight end prospect in the country in the 2011 class, and he chose California over Oregon, Maryland, and Boston College, which was closest to his home in Shrewsbury, MA.

Carl Bradford: 3 stars

Bradford committed to Arizona State early, during the summer before his senior year of high school.

Corey Linsley: 4 stars

The 6th-ranked guard coming out of high school in the 2009 class, Linsley had offers from schools all over the Midwest but chose Ohio State.

Jared Abbrederis: N/A

A high school quarterback from Wautoma, WI, Abbrederis came to Wisconsin as a preferred walk-on in the fall of 2009  and redshirted before emerging as the Badgers' top receiver in his redshirt sophomore year of 2011.

Demetri Goodson: 3 stars (basketball)

Goodson went to Gonzaga as a 3-star point guard but eventually transferred to Baylor to restart his football career.

Jeff Janis: N/A

Janis drew some slight interest from Michigan, according to Rivals, but never got a scholarship offer and ended up at Division II Saginaw Valley State.

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A few of the Packers' undrafted free agent signings also have notable recruiting backgrounds:

Colt Lyerla, TE: 5 stars
Adrian Hubbard, LB: 4 stars
Rajion Neal, RB: 4 stars
Jayrone Elliott, LB: 3 stars
John Fullington, OT: 3 stars
Jordan McCray: 3 stars
Mike Pennel, DT: 3 stars
LaDarius Perkins, RB: 3 stars
Chase Rettig, QB: 3 stars
Ryan White, CB: 3 stars
Carlos Gray: 2 stars
Tanner Miller: 2 stars