J.J. Watt's Dinner Party Guests' Were All High Achievers...But Who's Resume Is Most Impressive?

If you’re like me and have trouble being comfortable in your own skin around overachievers, be thankful J.J. Watt didn’t invite you to his dinner party on Thursday night.

The former NFL defensive end celebrated a birthday for his friends John Rahm and Zach Ertz (a former teammate). Both athletes were born on November 10, so they celebrated a bit early.

Rahm and Ertz have each achieved much in their careers. However, their respective accomplishments (more on that in a minute) pale in comparison to the other guests at the table.

From left to right in the following photo, you’ll see Watt, his wife Kealia, Rahm’s wife Kelley Cahill,

Rahm, Ertz’s wife Julie, Michael Phelps, and his wife Nichole Johnson.

That’s a lot of high achievers for one event! But this obviously begs the question, where does each person stack up based on what they’ve achieved?

J.J. Watt Invited Some Amazing People Over For Dinner

Let’s start at the bottom and work our way up:

No. 8: Kelley Cahill - She specialized in throwing the javelin for the Arizona State Sun Devils in college. Her personal best throw (34.92m - 114' 7") came in the 2013 ASU Invitational.

If you can manage to play a Division I-level sport during college you have my respect. While the other athletes boast more extensive athletic resumes, Cahill isn’t an underachiever by any means. She gets the bottom spot simply because of everyone else there.

No. 7: Nichole Johnson - Phelp’s wife is no stranger to being a champion herself. Johnson earned the title of “Miss California” in 2010.

While winning your state’s beauty pageant is hard enough, imagine doing it in a state that had more than 37 million citizens that year. That’s about as hard as it gets!

No 6: Kealia Watt - The former soccer star’s signature moment came in 2012 as a member of the United States’ U-20 World Cup roster. She scored what would be the winning goal in the final against Spain (America won, 3-1). She’s also played for professional women’s teams in the States.

While many people (rightfully) show a high level of disdain for the U.S. women’s soccer program as a whole, Watt did not contribute to the drama at all. That in and of itself is impressive.

No. 5: Zach Ertz - The Arizona Cardinals tight end has played in 151 games in his 11-year career, hauling in 709 receptions for 7,439 yards. While a member of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017, he won a Super Bowl by helping defeat the New England Patriots. From 2017-19, he attended three straight super bowls.

The birthday boy sure knows how to get it done on the gridiron. If only the rest of his Arizona teammates did too.

Zach Ertz (86) has enjoyed a successful career with the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

The Resumes For The Guests Only Get More Insane

No. 4: J.J. Watt - For 12 years, J.J. Watt terrorized the NFL as a defensive end for the Cardinals and Houston Texas. He twice led the league in sacks (2012, 2015) and won the AP Defensive Player of the Year Award those same years. Watt earned five All-Pro nods and Pro Bowl selections as well.

Safe to say this guy’s going to Canton in the near future.

No. 3: Julie Ertz - Like Kelia, Ertz didn’t stir any drama as a member of the United States Women’s Soccer team. Additionally, she was one of the best players that the program has ever seen.

Ertz dominated the youth level, winning the U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year in 2012. Her success translated to the senior team as well. Ertz twice earned the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year (2017, 2019), and is the only player to earn those awards at the youth and senior levels.

She won back-to-back World Cups (2015, 2019), and a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympics in Japan. She was widely hailed as one of the best at her position during her career.

While Kealia and J.J. make a great “power couple,” I think Team Ertz gets the nod as the best at that dinner party.

No. 2: John Rahm - Nicknamed "Rhambo,” the Spain native has won 11 PGA Tour Victories, including a 2021 U.S. Open win and the 2023 Masters. In eight years at the professional level, he’s brought home $51,546,652 in earnings from all competitions. He’s been on the Ryder Cup team three times (2018, 2020, 2023).

Lots of people would give anything to have the resume of just one of these people. But they all pale in comparison to the one and only…

No. 1: Michael Phelps - The American swimmer is one of the best athletes ever, and has a remarkable list of accomplishments to prove it.

Few athletes have achieved the level of greatness that Michael Phelps has. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Across five Summer Olympics, he earned a mind-boggling 28 medals, 23 of which were gold.

In 2008, he won eight of those golds by setting world or Olympic records in eight separate events. His worst Olympic showing was the 2012 Games in London, where he won four golds and two silvers. After winning two bronze in Athens in 2004 - as a 15-year-old - he never finished less than second in an event again.

So yeah, this was a dinner party loaded with legends in their respective fields. I think I’m going to spend the rest of the day looking for self-esteem and trying to not compare myself to these guys.