Young GM’s Bold Draft Reshapes the Jaguars and Shakes Up the NFL

Before the start of the 2025 NFL Draft’s first round Thursday night, things were quiet. No trades with first-round picks, which is somewhat unusual in the common draft era.

And then Jaguars general manager James Gladstone stirred the pot. After the Titans took Miami QB off the board with the No. 1 pick, Gladstone dangled a massive collection of draft picks—including their second-round pick (No. 36), a fourth-round pick, and a 2026 first-round pick—to the Browns for the No. 2 pick, and their fourth- and sixth-round selections. 

Cleveland accepted, and Gladstone used it to draft Colorado’s two-way star, Travis Hunter.

Then, on Friday night, the 34-year-old GM made another trade, this time sending Jacksonville’s No. 70 pick to the Lions. By the time the third round ended, the Jaguars had traded away their top-three picks to grab what they believe will be a franchise-altering player and take advantage of what Gladstone sees as a deep board. 

Hunter and Gatherers

The Jaguars opened with a splash by drafting Travis Hunter and followed it up by stacking depth and athleticism on both sides of the ball.

• Pick 2: Travis Hunter, CB/WR (Colorado)
• Pick 88: Caleb Ranshaw, CB (Tulane)
• Pick 89: Wyatt Milum, OG (West Virginia)
• Pick 104: Bhayshul Tuten, RB (Virginia Tech)
• Pick 107: Jack Kiser, LB (Notre Dame)
• Pick 194: Jalen McLeod, LB (Auburn)
• Pick 200: Rayuan Lane, S (Navy)
• Pick 221: Jonah Monheim, C (USC)
• Pick 236: LeQuint Allen, RB (Syracuse)

Gladstone is the second-youngest GM in NFL history, and he’s already developed a reputation for bold decision-making. He joined the Rams front office in 2016 when the team hadn’t had a winning season since 2003. He then helped transform it into a perennial winner that earned four division titles and one Super Bowl in eight years.

The Jaguars need their own shakeup. After drafting Trevor Lawrence in 2021, Jacksonville turned in back-to-back winning seasons in 2022 and 2023 before sinking to 4–13 in 2024, which led to owner Shad Khan sacking head coach Doug Pederson and then-GM Trent Baalke.

Now, the on-field personnel are changing, with Lawrence getting a weapon in Hunter and one of the league’s worst defenses getting an upgrade in the secondary.

In a press conference following the first round, Gladstone explained his thinking: “There are players who have the capacity to alter a game. There are players who have the capacity to alter the trajectory of a team. There are very few players who have the capacity to alter the trajectory of the sport itself. Travis, while he has a lot to still earn, in our eyes has the potential to do just that.”

And Gladstone laid out his philosophy, making clear that more moves could be on the table:

“When there’s an opportunity to be bold, we’re not going to flinch.”