Las Vegas Raiders: Johnathan Abram release is another stain on the Mayock Era

The New Orleans Saints have officially waived former Las Vegas Raiders first-round pick Johnathan Abram.

After the Khalil Mack trade the Las Vegas Raiders had the world as their oyster. They had a massive amount of draft picks, a decent roster, and a General Manager who had been a draft guru for the last decade and added Antonio Brown to the roster.

However, despite having five first round picks in 2019 and 2020, the Raiders could not improve their roster. In 2019, the Raiders had a three-player haul, but decided to pick Clelin Ferrell at No. 4 overall, a shocking pick that was the tip of the iceberg.

While Josh Jacobs was an excellent selection, Abram was a bust, and in 2020, they swung and missed on two promising prospects. Both Henry Ruggs III and Damon Arnette are no longer in the league, and have had horrific legal troubles, so all told, only Jacobs helped the Raiders in those five selections.

Raiders hoping to turn the page with Dave Ziegler.

Then, in 2021, they drafted Alex Leatherwood who was massively overrated and couldn't keep his weight at a reasonable amount and is no longer in the league as well.

For a while, Abram had solid buzz to him, as he looked good in the preseason, and was a star when the Raiders were the featured team on HBO's Hard Knocks. However, he was injured in his first NFL regular season game, and upon his return, was way too inconsistent to ever be considered a legitimate cornerstone player.

So where does Abram go from here? He has good physical gifts, so he will likely get another shot on someone's practice squad, but in terms of the Raiders he is another stain on the Mike Mayock Era. Going forward, the hope is that Dave Ziegler and his staff can do a better job in the first round of the NFL Draft.

Tyree Wilson was his first Day 1 choice, and maybe he can change the narrative.