Packers Sign Micah Abernathy, Give Him Instant Snaps

The USFL helped new safety Micah Abernathy resurrect his NFL dreams.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – “Micah, move over!” defensive backs coach Jerry Gray yelled at the safety.

You’ll have to forgive Micah Abernathy for being misaligned. He had just signed with the Green Bay Packers and was taking part in an 11-on-11 period without having even glimpsed the playbook.

“You’ve got to learn on the fly. That’s part of the job description,” Abernathy said.

Abernathy was a three-year starter at Tennessee but went undrafted in 2019. As a rookie free agent, he signed with the Vikings but was released before the start of training camp, then got shots with the Buccaneers and Colts.

And that was it as far as NFL opportunities. His chance in the XFL was ruined by COVID-19. The USFL helped him resurrect his NFL dreams. A starter for the Houston Gamblers, he finished third on the team with 71 tackles and second with two interceptions.

“It meant a lot. It was another opportunity to showcase what I can do on the field,” he said. “Special teams-wise, I was in a leadership role. It felt really good to be one of those guys on the team and to be a starter for the whole season. I hadn’t started since college so it was pretty cool to get some more experience. And I got my wind back, and that’s going to help me. While I’m coming into training camp late, I already played a season.”

Where would he be without the USFL? Probably not being realigned by Gray during a red-zone period just a couple hours after signing a contract.

“Who knows? Who knows?” he said when asked where he’d be without the USFL. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity. It got me to where I want to be. I’ve just got to take advantage of it.”

Abernathy’s challenge is steep. There are eight safeties on the roster, including starters Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage, top backups Vernon Scott and Shawn Davis, former Raiders special teams ace Dallin Leavitt and seventh-round pick Tariq Carpenter. Those guys know what they’re doing. Abernathy’s got a couple days to catch up in hopes of playing at the San Francisco 49ers on Friday night.

Abernathy’s plan? Full speed ahead.

“I feel like speed is a big part of my game, so I play fast regardless, whether I know what I’m doing or not,” he said. “I think you should play fast even if you don’t know what you’re doing, just so they can see you have some type of ability. A lot of Xs and Os are the same; just different terminology. I was able to recall a couple things from where I’ve been in the past and run with it.”

Abernathy’s grandfather is Ralph David Abernathy Sr., a legendary face of the civil-rights movement who marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr. They were frequently jailed together. When King was slain, Abernathy held him until paramedics could arrive.

David Abernathy died seven years before Micah was born.

“It’s humbling to know that my grandfather did what he did,” Micah said. “He passed in 1990 so I wasn’t able to meet him, but I feel like I know him through all the stories that my family and people I didn’t even know tell me. It’s humbling but I’m blessed to have somebody in my family like that. I’m just trying to carry on his legacy in the right way.”