Getty The Seahawks have claimed safety Johnathan Abram off waivers.
The Seattle Seahawks have claimed a former first-round draft pick off the waiver wire.
Less than a day after the Green Bay Packers released safety Johnathan Abram, the Seahawks have succeeded in claiming the 26-year-old, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
“The Seahawks claimed safety Johnathan Abram off waivers from the #Packers, per source,” said Pelissero on Wednesday, November 30.
Abram was released by the Packers less than 20 days after he was claimed by the team off waivers from the Las Vegas Raiders. The fourth-year veteran was waived by the Raiders after starting the first six games of the season.
The move comes just days after Seattle had placed wide receiver Dee Eskridge was placed on injured reserve. As Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times notes, the move makes sense considering starting strong safety Ryan Neal is dealing with an elbow injury.
“Makes some sense given Neal’s uncertainty and taking a flier on a younger player,” says Condotta. “Seattle had an open roster spot after putting Eskridge on IR over the weekend.”
Abram Has Disappointed as First-Round Pick
The former 27th overall draft pick has started 34 of his career 38 appearances and racked up 116 tackles last season, ranking second on the Raiders in total tackles.
Through 10 games and six starts this season, Abram has posted 50 tackles. He played primarily on special teams during his two appearances with the Packers.
While Abram has certainly posted a lot of tackles during his career, his play has been underwhelming overall — especially when you consider he’s a former first-round draft pick. According to Pro Football Focus, Abram has posted a 49.5 defensive grade this season. That grade ranks among the bottom 11 among all safeties with at least 100 snaps.
Through his first four seasons, Abram’s career-best defensive grade is 56.9, which he posted last year. His coverage grade in a single season has never been higher than a 54.2.
Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic notes that despite Neal’s elbow injury, he’s expected to play this Sunday versus the Los Angeles Rams.
“Ryan Neal was in the walk-thru and is healthier than they expected at this point, Pete Carroll says,” as reported by Dugar. “Won’t practice today but Pete making it sound like Ryan trending toward playing Sunday.”
Along with backup safety Josh Jones, Abram is expected to provide experienced depth behind Neal. If Neal can’t play on Sunday, expect Abram to be active.
Geno Smith’s Message to Seahawks After Loss
With the Seahawks in the midst of a two-game losing streak, quarterback Geno Smith has a strong message for his team — Seattle needs to learn how to close out games.
The comments came shortly after the Seahawks lost a 40-34 overtime game to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12.
“Reality is that we’re going from the hunter to the hunted,” Smith said, per NFL.com. “People want to play us. As a young team, we’ve got to learn to be able to go out there and win those games. That’s our next step in the evolution as a really young team. We got to understand the moment, capture the moments, take advantage. I feel like we had plenty of opportunities to go out there and win that game, finish it late, and we just didn’t get it done.”
The Seahawks are currently a game behind the 7-4 San Francisco 49ers for the division lead. Seattle lost their first game versus San Francisco earlier this season and will play the 49ers in Week 14.