It took the Jaguars one draft pick to raise questions about James Gladstone's savvy

James Gladstone had the world of pro football buzzing when he did the unthinkable and traded a haul to the Cleveland Browns to draft WR/DB Travis Hunter with the second-overall pick. Less than 10 games later, Hunter would suffer a season-ending injury and force the Jaguars to reconsider the dynamic athlete's future as a two-way player.

The Unicorn from Colorado was the most intriguing prospect of the entire 2025 draft class, so coveting him wasn't necessarily the problem. Instead, the bigger issue was the lack of top-end talent to rely on while Jacksonville worked to acclimate Hunter to the NFL level.

The Los Angeles Rams tend to have the foundation and the middle class of their rosters in place before making headline-grabbing moves. Before trading for Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles had appeared in a Super Bowl with Jared Goff under center. Before landing Trent McDuffie, Les Snead had already built his offensive and defensive lines to an elite standard.

Why is James Gladstone under scrutiny?

In Jacksonville, we find ourselves in another situation where the Jaguars had massive holes on the roster before Gladstone reached to grab a prospect he was in love with. The team hasn't replaced Devin Lloyd, and there's no depth behind Ventrell Miller if he suffers an injury. Likewise, the lack of disruption from the team's defensive tackles on passing downs severely limits Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker's ability to take over games.

After Gladstone's performance, or lack thereof, in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft, I think it's fair to start asking if he's as wise and ready as he was touted to be when he was first brought into the fold.

Nate Boerkircher's selection is yet another sign that James Gladstone relies too much on the stars he was hired to replace

Despite being focused on signing great culture fits and guys who were intangibly rich, Gladstone had no problem disrupting the team's chemistry and trading Tyson Campbell to the Browns for Greg Newsome. Newsome was disappointing in his performances and failed to show Jacksonville's front office that he was worth making a long-term investment in. Luckily, Montaric Brown, one of Trent Baalke's Day 3 picks, was there for Gladstone to sign.

Likewise, Travis Hunter's flexibility as a two-way star gave Gladstone a chance to address the team's lack of a CB1 instantaneously. Wasn't that convenient?

With Brenton Strange on the roster, the Jaguars have a multifaceted tight end who can block and serve as one of Trevor Lawrence's most-trusted targets. I guess that's what made Gladstone feel comfortable enough to draft a pure blocker from the SEC in the second round. Wait, I'm noticing a trend here.

For a guy who was brought in to flip the roster and take the franchise to new heights, he sure does rely on Trent Baalke's players a lot. And, when he makes a mistake, he overcorrects to a startling degree. Look at Devin Lloyd, for example. The front office decided not to claim his fifth-year option, and the Utah alum had the best year of his career, hit the open market, and landed with the Carolina Panthers. How did Gladstone respond? By giving Travon Walker a massive contract after a 3.5 sack season and claiming Anton Harrison's option in the same offseason.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is quite possible that we have a general manager who is frozen at the wheel. It sucks to say, but the Jaguars have actually gotten worse since the clock hit zero against the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card round.

Where does the team go from here? I guess the third round will have the answers.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow