In the week that has passed since the NFL Draft, we’ve written plenty of stories here at Rivals.com breaking down the star rankings of various draftees. But today it’s time to take a look at some former elite high school recruits that for one reason or another ended up not getting selected by any NFL teams. Here’s a breakdown of the seven draft-eligible five-stars from the class of 2013 that didn’t hear their names called.
RELATED: Top 10 former five-stars who were picked in 2018 | Four-stars | Three-stars | Two-stars and unrated prospects
As a recruit: Redfield initially committed to USC but kept his options open and eventually made the very rare flip from the Trojans to rival Notre Dame following the conclusion of his senior season.
In college: Redfield wasted little time become an impact player in South Bend, playing in 12 games as a freshman and starting 11 of 13 games as a sophomore in 2014. That trend continued with another solid season in 2015. However, just prior to the start of his senior year on 2016, Redfield was arrested for marijuana possession and was dismissed from the team. He elected to transfer to Division II program Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he sat out the 2016 season. Redfield played for IUP in 2017 and was one of the team’s best players, recording 78 tackles and four interceptions.
Now: Redfield was invited to the Raiders' rookie mini-camp, where he will have a chance to earn his way onto the team’s 90-man roster.
Farrell’s take: Talent wasn’t the issue for Redfield, an impact player at the FBS level, but off field trouble led to his transfer and to being ignored at the draft. He was always a kid out of high school who could run, cover a lot of ground and had solid instincts, so it’s a waste of sorts to see this happen.
As a recruit: Isaac’s recruitment came down to a trio of schools, Michigan, Notre Dame and USC. Despite his Midwest ties, Isaac fell in love with the Trojans and committed to Lane Kiffin and company during the spring following his junior season.
In college: Isaac saw the field quickly in Los Angeles, rushing for 236 yards as a true freshman in 2013, but missed home and elected to transfer to Michigan where he would sit out the 2014 season. He battled various injuries during his time in Ann Arbor but go better with every season, capping his career off with 548 yards rushing in 2017.
Now: Isaac has yet to sign with a team and is still recovering from knee surgery earlier this year.
Farrell’s take: I was never a big Isaac backer as a five-star talent because I thought he was too upright, stiff and wasn’t elusive enough to be an elite back. However, the consensus was that he had five-star talent and would be a star at USC. After two stops, he never showed the ability some thought he had and I don’t expect him to stick in the NFL. I don’t think this is an injury situation either. I just felt he was a notch below elite.
As a recruit: Mitchell had a long list of offers but Ohio State was a constant presence in his recruitment, eventually landing his commitment following his senior season.
In college: Mitchell had one of the most puzzling careers of a five-star in recent memory, redshirting at Ohio State before transferring to Texas Tech, where he sat out the 2014 season before appearing in nine games and recording seven tackles in 2015. He then transferred from the Red Raiders to NAIA program Southeastern where he had very little impact, recorded six tackles over two seasons in 2016 and 2017.
Now: Mitchell wasn’t on the NFL radar and isn’t expected to sign with a team.
Farrell’s take: Mitchell was a freak athlete and had all the talent in the world. He had size, speed, was a quick twitch linebacker and was physical. The questions were about his knowledge of the game and his love for football, but he was too talented to keep below five stars. Obviously the latter traits won out and he never materialized into a star player and is off the radar now. This one is surprising.
As a recruit: With a national list of offers, Herron made a commitment to LSU following his junior year of high school and never wavered on his pledge.
In college: Herron’s career at LSU got off to a slow start as he struggled to be productive early in his career and also ran into troubles off the field, including an arrest for a bicycle theft in 2014. Herron finally started to tap into his talent in 2015 and 2016, becoming an important part of the Tigers’ rotation and playing well when he was healthy. He capped off his career with 21 tackles in 2017 and finished with 67 career stops and two sacks.
Now: Herron was signed by New England as an undrafted free agent.
Farrell’s take: This one is on me as I was the leader of the Herron train. I liked his size, quickness off the snap, technique and motor, but as he grew he lost some of that speed and the off-field issues never helped. I don’t expect him to have a long NFL career if at all. He doesn’t appear to want it bad enough from an outside perspective.
As a recruit: Despite flirtations with programs like Tennessee and USC, Tyner committed to Oregon during the fall of his senior season, electing to stay home and play for the Ducks.
In college: Tyner hit the ground running at Oregon, rushing for 711 yards and nine touchdowns as a true freshman and playing a major role in the Ducks’ run to the National Championship Game as a sophomore in 2014. But after suffering what was deemed a career-ending injury, Tyner medically retired and sat out the 2015 and 2016 seasons. After deciding to return to football and being ineligible to play for the Ducks, Tyner transferred to Oregon State, where he rushed for 297 yards and three touchdowns in 2017.
Now: Tyner could have petitioned for an extra year of eligibility to play again in 2018, but elected to walk away from football.
Farrell’s take: We debated this one endlessly as Tyner was always injury prone, especially with track injuries and off-season issues, but he was so fast and had such good size for a track star we couldn’t resist. He was either going to be a home run and superstar or a dud and he became the latter.
As a recruit: Thomas made several teams sweat it out until the very end, eventually choosing Florida State over Miami, Georgia and Alabama.
In college: Before he ever arrived in Tallahassee, Thomas asked for a release from his scholarship in the spring of 2013, but eventually he was talked into sticking with the Seminoles. After playing in a few games a freshman, he was injured, leading to a redshirt year and he also missed the 2015 season after being suspended. His career finally came alive in 2016, when he led the Seminoles in tackles. After struggling with some minor injuries at the beginning of the season in 2017, Thomas had another quality season, recording a career-high 85 tackles, including 10 for loss.
Now: Thomas signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent.
Farrell’s take: Thomas had all the talent to be a star and is making me wonder if linebacker isn’t the toughest position aside from quarterback to evaluate. There’s no way he should have had an average career and fell through the cracks at the draft, but here we are. I don’t expect him to stick in the NFL. He’s been good but apparently not good enough. The suspension of course didn’t help his status.
As a recruit: A Washington native, Browne was wooed by schools from all over the country, but ultimately elected to commit to USC over offers from Alabama, Clemson and several others.
In college: After waiting patiently behind a talented stable of quarterbacks, he earned the starting job in 2016, but struggled and was eventually replaced by Sam Darnold. After graduating in 2017, Browne transferred to Pittsburgh for his final year of eligibility but had middling results, throwing for 997 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions before suffering a season-ending injury.
Now: Browne has yet to sign with an NFL team.
Farrell’s take: Browne was a tough one to evaluate because he would look amazing in games and in reading defenses but look a bit too slow in processing information in 7-on-7 or camp instances. He looked like two different quarterbacks, one on film and one in person. We went with five stars and believed the film, but it turns out the in person Browne was the one who struggled at USC and didn’t do anything at Pitt. This was a massive rankings whiff and he has no chance at an NFL career.
