The Raiders entered the draft with three first-round picks and the most draft capital around the league. With the high capital, they used a first round selection on a safety.
The Raiders selected safety Jonathan Abram out of Mississippi State with the 27th overall pick. Abram had some high praise before the draft, being considered as one of the better safeties in the 2019 draft class.
With the selection of Abram, he’ll slot in alongside Karl Joseph and newly acquired Lamarcus Joyner at the safety. Perhaps, Joyner will also see some playing time at nickel corner, leaving Abram and Joseph as the primary deep safeties.
Abram possesses a superior skill set, most notably being known for his hard-hitting ability and his first-class athletic traits. He’s shown signs of developing into a better cover safety down the road, as that’s an area where he could use some improvement.
Abram’s skill set appears to be very similar to what Karl Joseph brings to the table. Joseph is also known as someone who lays the wood on opposing receivers and is a run stuffing safety. Both guys play with an old school football mentality which Jon Gruden has praised his players for.
The Raiders also made the decision to decline Joseph’s fifth-year option. Although, they can still extend him before he becomes a free-agent, but by declining the fifth-year option it doesn’t tie them into any financial compensation moving forward with Joseph.
Gruden made it abundantly clear that by declining Joseph’s fifth-year option, it doesn’t mean he won’t have a role on the team after his final season under contract.
"“It’s a big story for some people, but that does not mean that we do not want Karl with us and in the future,” said Gruden. “All that means is that we didn’t exercise the fifth-year option. If you really study the fifth-year option and what it entails, it entails a lot. It does not mean, by any means, that we do not want Karl Joseph as a captain or as a leader on this team, now or in the future.”"
It appears the Raiders want to play out the 2019 season before making a decision on Joseph. He came on during the backend of last season, playing some high quality football for Paul Guenther’s defense, but he’s also experienced some highs and lows during his time in Oakland.
If Joseph can carry over his quality play from last season into this season, I believe there is a chance that he gets an extension. If he serves as just a regular role player on the team, like he’s done in the past, then I’d assume the Raiders look to trade him before he hits free-agency. This is a huge season coming up for Joseph, as it will dictate where he plays and how much he’ll get paid moving forward.