Introducing Rivals all-time All-Five-Star team

CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State

CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals100 | Position | Team | State

This week, Rivals.com will release its teams based on star rankings starting today with the five-stars. There will be 11 on offense and 11 on defense based by position. At the end of the week, Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell will further break down each team and determine which star-ranked team is the best of them all.

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There have been a decent amount of five-star quarterbacks through the years that are still active and this was a tough choice but Cam Newton beat out Deshaun Watson and Matt Stafford for the starting job on the five-star team.

Running back is absolutely loaded with some young NFL stars who could be outstanding in the coming years, with Alvin Kamara, Joe Mixon and Dalvin Cook on the list, but Adrian Peterson gets the nod with Leonard Fournette a close second.

Another position that is outstanding with a ton of elite talent is wide receiver, but there are clearly three who have emerged as huge stars in Julio Jones, Stefon Diggs and A.J. Green. Keenan Allen, Calvin Ridley, Jarvis Landy, JuJu Smith-Schuster and others were also seriously considered.

At tight end, Greg Olsen remains in the league and leads a pretty thin group - as expected - with Kyle Rudolph and O.J. Howard among the others considered.

Protecting across the offensive line are former five-stars Quenton Nelson, Tyron Smith, Matt Kalil, D.J. Fluker and Andre Smith. Many others also fit the bill, including Laremy Tunsil, Seantrel Henderson, Andrus Peat and others.

Arguably the best prospect in Rivals history, five-star defensive end Jadeveon Clowney,leads the way on the defensive line. He is joined by Myles Garrett, No. 2 overall in the 2014 class and a player who is already becoming a star in the NFL. There were a lot of other big-time names that could have joined this group to round out the defensive line, but Chris Jones and Gerald McCoy won out.

At linebacker, size is not an issue and there are some big hitters. Jordan Hicks, Brandon Graham and Vontaze Burfict lead the group, with Jaylon Smith, Anthony Barr, Shaq Thompson and others also considered. Burfict has more than 600 tackles since joining the league in 2012.

Big cornerbacks and safeties are the starters on the five-star team. Jalen Ramsey, Patrick Peterson, Derwin James and Landon Collins get the nod over Tre’Davious White, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and others.

As expected, this team is loaded. But five-stars make up a small percentage of the total number of players in every recruiting cycle, so it’s surprising that there aren’t that many holes and some very good players left off the list.

Newton leads a strong offense that is especially loaded at wide receiver, and the running back duo is an impressive one. The offensive line is loaded with tackles for the most part but Nelson at guard could be the best of the bunch.

On defense there, are many versatile players and some tough decisions had to be made. I love the secondary especially, while linebacker was tough. But guys like Burfict and Graham get the nod over some younger guys based on their experience. This team can go up against anyone, but can Newton dial in and lead the potent offense or would Watson or Stafford been a better choice?

OFFENSE

QB - Cam Newton (2010)

RB - Adrian Peterson (2004), Leonard Fournette (2014)

WR - Julio Jones (2008), Stefon Diggs (2012), A.J. Green (2008)

TE - Greg Olsen (2003)

OL - D.J. Fluker (2009), Andre Smith (2006), Quenton Nelson (2014), Tyron Smith (2008), Matt Kalil (2008)

DEFENSE

DL - Jadeveon Clowney (2011), Myles Garrett (2014), Chris Jones (2013), Gerald McCoy (2006)

LB - Jordan Hicks (2010), Brandon Graham (2006), Vontaze Burfict (2009)

DB - Jalen Ramsey (2013), Patrick Peterson (2008), Derwin James (2015), Landon Collins (2012)