The Las Vegas Raiders drafted Johnathan Abram in the first round a few years back, and now is the time for him to put it all together.
The former regime for the Raiders became very enamored with players’ personalities in the draft, especially after coaching them in the 2019 Senior Bowl. The greatest example of this was Johnathan Abram, who the Raiders ultimately selected in the first round of the 2019 draft.
Abram was the consensus top safety in a very weak safety class, but the Raiders didn’t have an immediate first-round need with Karl Joseph on the roster. However, Abram’s passionate personality and aggression made the Raiders fall in love with him.
The Raiders selected Abram ahead of Nasir Adderley and Taylor Rapp, two safeties who have proven to be better players with good coverage skills, while Abram has struggled with coverage in space. Abram showed flashes of the hard-hitting, aggressive safety that he was marketed to be during the 2019 draft in the first game of his rookie season, but that aggression led to him injuring his shoulder and missing the rest of the season.