Abram oozing confidence

As fierce a tackler as Johnathan Abram has proven to be, the Raiders want their second-year safety to be wise about when and how he takes his shots.

That’s not always an easy lesson for young players to learn, especially one like Abram whose hit-first-ask-questions-later style often leaves an opponent — or, more importantly, himself — laid out on the field feeling dazed and confused after a big play.

It’s a fine line, no doubt, but one that is critical for the Raiders defense which had Abram on the field for less than 30 minutes a year ago before an injury ended his rookie campaign.

“I think one of the things that he understands is there’s a time where you can take your shot and if it’s a real good shot, if a guy is hemmed up by somebody else and you’re coming to the stack,” Las Vegas defensive coordinator Paul Guenther said. “But if you’re in the open field or you’re the last man to the party, whatever it may be, you have to come to balance, track the near hip and tackle the runner. There’s two different ways of going about it playing safety.