Getty Johnathan Abram tackling DeAndre Carter.
The season keeps getting more chaotic for Johnathan Abram. The former first-round pick started off the season as one of the starting safeties for the Las Vegas Raiders but slowly saw his snaps decline. The team eventually decided to waive Abram.
He landed with the Green Bay Packers and got to reunite with former Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia. However, that tenure didn’t last long as the team also decided to waive him after just two games. He doesn’t need to put his head down yet. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Abram was claimed by the Seattle Seahawks.
He’ll now have a chance to finish the season with a playoff contender. The Raiders and Packers were out of the playoff race when he was with those teams but Seattle is the eighth seed in the NFC and within striking distance of a wildcard spot. The Seahawks usually have a stout defense due to Pete Carroll’s experience on that side of the ball. This season, they rank 28th in points per game allowed and just allowed 40 points to the Raiders in overtime. There’s plenty of opportunity for players to come in and make plays.
Seahawks Are a Good Landing Spot for Abram
If there’s any team in the NFL that knows how to get the most out of a defensive back, it’s the Seahawks. Some of the best defensive backs in the league over the past decade have played in Seattle. The team also has a penchant for trying to revive the careers of former first-round picks. Defensive end Dion Jordan, guard Luke Joeckel and defensive end Ezekiel Ansa are some of the former first-round picks who got second chances in Seattle. Jadeveon Clowney and D.J. Fluker are other names who spent time in Seattle. That said, none of them had much of an impact on the team.
A better comparison to Abram would be safety Quandre Diggs. He was a sixth-round pick when he came into the NFL but didn’t do much with his first team. He joined the Seahawks in 2019 and has made two Pro Bowls since. Seattle is likely hoping that they can take Abram and have him develop in a similar way to Diggs. It’s a long shot as Abram’s struggles in coverage are well-documented but the Seahawks are the one team that can make it work.
Patrick Graham Urges Importance of Players Bouncing Back
It’s been a rough season for the Raiders’ defense. There’s only been one game this season where the unit allowed less than 20 points in a game. Almost every player on the defense has had good and bad moments but very few players have been consistent. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham expressed the importance of players being able to bounce back.
“Everybody bounces back from their past experience,” Graham said Tuesday. “Some of the best learning I’ve had has been from defeats. I remember my first game as a coordinator, I mean you could look it up. It’s about as embarrassing as it gets. (laughter) Definitely not how I saw it going. I’ve learned from that, but we all learn from our experiences. They’re football players; we’re coaches. We get paid to do something and you’ve got to bounce back. It’s a week-to-week league, and that’s what we have to do.”