Though the trade deadline's come and gone, the Green Bay Packers finally got around to adding a notable name to the fold.
The Packers claimed former Las Vegas Raiders safety Johnathan Abram off waivers, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported Wednesday afternoon.
One of myriad first-round busts from the ill-fated Jon Gruden-Mike Mayock regime, Abram was taken 27th overall in the 2019 NFL Draft and waived Tuesday after three-plus seasons and 36 games with the Silver and Black. Now he's headed to the Green and Gold, where he'll presumably look to reset his career and refresh a stagnant Packers back end.
Abram, who started the first six games of the season before tumbling down the Las Vegas depth chart ahead of his release, has 48 tackles this year and an uninspiring 49.5 Pro Football Focus overall grade. However, Packers safeties Adrian Amos (56.1 grade) and Darnell Savage (47.6) haven't fared much better for a disappointing Packers squad that's lost five in a row.
Though they did their diligence, the Packers (3-6) came up short of making a splashy addition ahead of the Nov. 1 trade deadline and Abram will do nothing to improve Green Bay's sluggish offense. Nonetheless, it's a low-risk move for a team still grasping at hope for the 2022 campaign.
The Packers are now on the books to pay Abram just north of $1 million in base salary for the final year of his rookie contract. The Raiders had previously declined Abram's fifth-year option, along with those of their other 2019 opening-rounders, Clelin Ferrell and Josh Jacobs.
Abram, 26, will find a familiar face in Green Bay, as 2021 Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia is the Packers' special teams coordinator, but he will ultimately find a second chance to fulfill some first-round potential. That could start as early as Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.
