The Raiders' final selection of the first round is Mississippi State safety Johnathan Abram with the No. 27 overall pick, the Oakland Raiders added to the defensive side of the ball with their third pick of the night.
Abram was his conference's Defensive Player of the Year at safety as a high school senior in Columbia, Miss., and also a dual-threat quarterback. He left the state to sign with Georgia for the 2015 season. Abram played well, starting four of 10 games played that year (25 tackles, 1.5 for loss). The departure of defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt to Alabama, led Abram to return to Mississippi to play at Jones County Junior College for 2016. The No. 1 JUCO safety recruit in the country, Abram enrolled at MSU to become a starter for the Bulldogs his junior year (71 tackles, five for loss, two sacks, five pass breakups). His play in 2017 earned fans of NFL scouts, and his senior campaign impressed SEC coaches (first-team all-conference) and the media (third-team Associated Press All-American). Abram started 13 games in 2018, leading the Bulldogs with 99 tackles, nine for loss, three sacks, two interceptions, five pass breakups and a forced fumble.
