JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – James Gladstone and Liam Coen are ready to set the tone for the Jaguars.
On Tuesday at the franchise’s annual pre-draft luncheon, Coen and Gladstone combed through their thought process, adhered to their favorite catchphrase and didn’t downplay just what the alignment was for the Jaguars.
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Just how substantial is Jacksonville’s first pick in the draft, which comes at the No. 5 spot? Gladstone agreed with a question about the first selection becoming a player he could ultimately be defined by.
“I think naturally that’s absolutely where your mind goes. We’ve had discussions on that subject a number of times,” Gladstone said.
“Certainly feel really good about the pot of players right now that we’re discussing, and that that would align with all the messages that we would like to send to the locker room, to our fan base, to the greater football landscape about who the Jacksonville Jaguars are going to be moving forward.”
That philosophy isn’t uncommon. Head coaches and general managers often stake their futures on nailing high draft picks. Coen and Gladstone aren’t facing the job scrutiny that say Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen are this year with the Giants, but they know that they have to nail the draft to flip the franchise around. Coen said he’s pumped to add so many younger players to the roster.
“It is exciting. Like I mentioned last time, a conversation we had with the staff and something that we don’t want to fear whatsoever,” Coen said. “I think naturally as a coach, you just go to a safe place of a veteran, which I completely respect and appreciate, but it’s definitely something we’re going to lean into. The guys should be excited about it. You can continue to coach hard and get the best out of these guys when they’re freshly in the league and really want to do their best. We’re excited about that factor.”
All too often, Jacksonville has been dogged by poor selections in the draft, especially in the first round.
Looking at the last 10 drafts (2015-24), only two players who were eligible for second contracts with the team signed on (Josh Hines-Allen from 2019 and Trevor Lawrence from 2021). Travon Walker (No. 1 overall in 2022) is positioned to be the third on that list. Last year’s first-rounder, receiver Brian Thomas Jr., looks like a star.
The others have all ranged from exceptional with baggage (Jalen Ramsey) to overdrafted (Dante Fowler, K’Lavon Chaisson) to just bad (CJ Henderson). Other recent first rounders like Travis Etienne, Anton Harrison and Devin Lloyd have flashed potential (Etienne) but been inconsistent and underwhelming.
The new regime of Coen and Gladstone seem to have an idea of what they like when it comes to players, with the buzz phrase “intangibly rich” the new
“I’ve been asked quite often, like, what does that actually mean? I promise that whatever just came to your mind is what I’m thinking. It exists (smiling). It’s in my mind as well as yours. I was asked right off the jump, physical and mental toughness. That’s a part of intangibly rich. It’s a big part of it. Those two elements will be top of mind.”
Gladstone and Coen said the words intangible or intangibly 10 times during the predraft availability session. Could that mean a player who has great intangibles like running back Ashton Jeanty is available at No. 5, the Jaguars would pounce? What about picking the best cornerback on the board, Texas’ Jahdae Barron or Will Johnson, or top receiver target in Tetairoa McMillan?
What about a trade up to snag two of the draft’s top-rated players in Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter? With Gladstone coming from the Rams landscape, making first-round selections is uncommon. In his nine seasons with that franchise working alongside GM Les Snead, Los Angeles made just two selections in the first round. They traded every first-round pick from 2017-2023, including a couple (2020-21) going to Jacksonville for Jalen Ramsey. The Rams picked quarterback Jared Goff in 2016, and then didn’t make another first-round pick until 2024. That selection, edge Jared Verse, won the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award.
Gladstone said Tuesday that Jacksonville won’t set its draft board until right before the selection.
“Right before we pick. It’s interesting. It’s not so black and white, right? You can probably think about the decisions you make in a day, especially when you have the chance to sleep on it, whether or not it’s the right one or the wrong one,” he said.
“We’ve gone through a ton of exercises over the last five weeks to where we sleep with decisions, right? We say, this is exactly what we’re doing over the course of the draft. How do we feel about this outcome? We wrestle with that, we sit with it, we reflect, then we try a new one.”
