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The NFL draft is still a few days away, but new Jacksonville Jaguars' GM James Gladstone has already quickly gone about reshaping the roster.
Before free agency began, Gladstone made the decision to move on from key contributors on offense, Evan Engram and Christian Kirk, along with four other players as well, all of which were moves that freed up salary cap space to provide the Jaguars with additional flexibility.
Gladstone then chose not to re-sign any of the Jaguars' own unrestricted free agents, while bringing in 10 outside additions. As Gladstone said, he wanted to utilize pro-free agency as a tool to help elevate the roster floor for the Jaguars, which he believed he accomplished.
Now that the NFL draft is just about here, it's time for Gladstone to address the ceiling of this roster. If the Jaguars are going to make a turnaround under their new leadership, this is where it will begin.
Although with a new organization, this is not uncharted waters for Gladstone.
Following a five-win season in 2022, the LA Rams made a very quick turnaround, producing two 10-win seasons that included a pair of playoff appearances. At the center of that 180 was the Rams' success in the NFL draft, which Gladstone played a crucial role in.
With 24 draft picks over that two-year span, the Rams hit on a high number of those prospects, selecting numerous starters and contributors, along with a trio of very high-impact players in Puka Nacu, Braden Fiske, and the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year, Jared Verse.
Helping to facilitate this draft day success is Gladstone's ability as a communicator. This skill of his was evident in a recent article by Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic, where anecdotes and insight from those who had been around Gladstone with the Rams painted the picture of a master communicator.
This ability not only includes how Gladstone communicates and shares information with others, but perhaps more importantly, how he gets others involved in the conversation and then utilizes that information to further discussions. Ultimately, the data and info that is extracted from those conversations is then utilized within Gladstone's well-established systems that help the team make informed decisions.
"He’s coded to communicate really, really well,” Rams GM Les Snead said to Rodrigue. “But then there’s the intentionality behind the communication which has probably made him rare, unique.”
In his relatively short time with the Jaguars, Gladstone has carried over some of the practices he had utilized with the Rams to Jacksonville and begun implementing those processes during the pre-draft cycle.
However, while there will be overlap in areas with how LA operates, Gladstone and the Jaguars will make it all their own as well, and that will be cultivated by Gladstone's willingness to make everyone around him a part of the conversation, so all voices are heard and all information is accounted for.
The Jaguars will enter the 2025 NFL draft with 10 selections, which is the most in the league. Next offseason, in 2026, the Jaguars are currently slated to have nine selections--giving them 19 in total over the next two years.
This provides the Jaguars with a real opportunity to transform the roster and to do so in a sustainable way, with the infusion of young, high-upside players on affordable rookie deals--a path that Gladstone has been down before and knows how to navigate.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: 2025 NFL draft: James Gladstone's superpower can spark Jaguars success
Continue reading...
Before free agency began, Gladstone made the decision to move on from key contributors on offense, Evan Engram and Christian Kirk, along with four other players as well, all of which were moves that freed up salary cap space to provide the Jaguars with additional flexibility.
Gladstone then chose not to re-sign any of the Jaguars' own unrestricted free agents, while bringing in 10 outside additions. As Gladstone said, he wanted to utilize pro-free agency as a tool to help elevate the roster floor for the Jaguars, which he believed he accomplished.
Now that the NFL draft is just about here, it's time for Gladstone to address the ceiling of this roster. If the Jaguars are going to make a turnaround under their new leadership, this is where it will begin.
Although with a new organization, this is not uncharted waters for Gladstone.
Following a five-win season in 2022, the LA Rams made a very quick turnaround, producing two 10-win seasons that included a pair of playoff appearances. At the center of that 180 was the Rams' success in the NFL draft, which Gladstone played a crucial role in.
With 24 draft picks over that two-year span, the Rams hit on a high number of those prospects, selecting numerous starters and contributors, along with a trio of very high-impact players in Puka Nacu, Braden Fiske, and the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year, Jared Verse.
Helping to facilitate this draft day success is Gladstone's ability as a communicator. This skill of his was evident in a recent article by Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic, where anecdotes and insight from those who had been around Gladstone with the Rams painted the picture of a master communicator.
This ability not only includes how Gladstone communicates and shares information with others, but perhaps more importantly, how he gets others involved in the conversation and then utilizes that information to further discussions. Ultimately, the data and info that is extracted from those conversations is then utilized within Gladstone's well-established systems that help the team make informed decisions.
"He’s coded to communicate really, really well,” Rams GM Les Snead said to Rodrigue. “But then there’s the intentionality behind the communication which has probably made him rare, unique.”
In his relatively short time with the Jaguars, Gladstone has carried over some of the practices he had utilized with the Rams to Jacksonville and begun implementing those processes during the pre-draft cycle.
However, while there will be overlap in areas with how LA operates, Gladstone and the Jaguars will make it all their own as well, and that will be cultivated by Gladstone's willingness to make everyone around him a part of the conversation, so all voices are heard and all information is accounted for.
The Jaguars will enter the 2025 NFL draft with 10 selections, which is the most in the league. Next offseason, in 2026, the Jaguars are currently slated to have nine selections--giving them 19 in total over the next two years.
This provides the Jaguars with a real opportunity to transform the roster and to do so in a sustainable way, with the infusion of young, high-upside players on affordable rookie deals--a path that Gladstone has been down before and knows how to navigate.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: 2025 NFL draft: James Gladstone's superpower can spark Jaguars success
Continue reading...
