James Gladstone's Latest Draft Is Just as Bold as His First

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars' 2026 draft class is not going to find much acclaim, but that also does not seem to matter much inside the Jaguars' building.

What does matter is what will happen on Sundays in the fall, and by all appearances, the Jaguars appear to be confident in the pieces they have added this offseason. So while analysts nationally may go viral for their hardened stances against the Jaguars' draft class, the Jaguars and general manager James Gladstone likely feel the exact opposite.

james gladstone — Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone speaks during a press conference at the Miller Electric Center, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

But that is what Gladstone and the Jaguars will be making their bet on. The Jaguars are far from the only team this offseason to stray from norms. They won't be the final one, nor will it be the final time they do so.

After going 13-4 and winning the AFC South last season, the Jaguars entered this offseason seemingly on a head-on trajectory with the Houston Texans in a race to see who would carry the most momentum into 2026. This is not to compare their offseasons, but when looking at the Jaguars' offseason in totality at this point, it is clear they hope to improve and how they hope to get there.

Jaguars' Bold Offseason

As expected, the Jaguars 2026 offseason got off to a quiet start. Not many people had them being big players and free agency, and the only player they ended up signing was former Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. That could obviously change moving forward now that free agent additions do not count toward the compensatory pick formula, but the Jaguars saw Travis Etienne and Devin Lloyd leaving in free agency, and not many new names are coming.

In the week before the draft, the Jaguars made a long awaited addition to their front seven by trading for Atlanta Falcons, defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro. While the former second round pick out of Clemson does not have a ton of stats to his name, he has promised as a pass rusher, and all the Jaguars had to give up was fellow former second round pick Maason Smith, who was unable to carve out a role with the Jaguars in 2025.

james gladston — Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone speaks during a press conference next to head coach Liam Coen at the Miller Electric Center, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While there are positives to both moves and what they can do for both the Jaguars rushing offense and their pass rush, which were the two areas they needed to improve the most, neither is exactly a big splash.

At times before the draft it felt like the splash might come then, but the Jaguars ended up making all four of their picks at their original slots in the top-100. They did make two trades in the draft, but both came on day three as they moved up around four for Duke defensive end Wesley Williams, and then again in round six for Baylor wide receiver Josh Cameron.

The Jaguars first two picks in the draft which came at number 56 and number 81 respectively, have not exactly been well received outside of Jacksonville due to the projected draft range of both players. But does how the consensus might value Texas A&M tight end Nate Boerkircher and Texas A&M defensive tackle Albert Regis actually mean anything when you consider their fit and what the Jaguars were looking for? That is for the Jaguars to find out.

That does not mean the attention and focus nationally has not now been put on Gladstone. His first draft class has been, and will remain to be, defined by the Travis Hunter trade, but the Jaguars got contributions out of most of their Day 3 picks and have high hopes for Hunter, Caleb Ransaw, and Wyatt Milum as second-year players.

The Jaguars went against all expectations and they stuck true to their process and their values. Whether that is right or wrong will prove itself on Sundays, though it is not exactly out of the abnormal for a team with a strong coaching staff and front office to have less-than-high-graded drafts and still succeed.

The current takes and perceptions on the Jaguars’ draft class do not and will not matter as long as they win again in the fall, and as long as Liam Coen, Anthony Campanile, and Grant Udinski develop these players at the same rate they developed players last year.

But for the second raft in a row, Gladstone and the Jaguars have people talking. Last year, it was for being bold and moving up for Hunter.

This time, it is for being mold and standing on their convictions and evaluations. Their record in 2026 and beyond will tell us if they’re right, but the 2025 season gives us little to doubt them.

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