Former Rams personnel exec James Gladstone borrowing Rams secret draft strategy

When the Los Angeles Rams front office lost personnel executive James Gladstone to become the next Jacksonville Jaguars General Manager, the move was one more act that depletes the Rams' draft brain trust. It's a valid concern, as the Rams have had noticeable success at drafting in recent years. Now, the question is, can the Rams continue their uncanny success without Gladstone?

We shall see.

The preparation for the annual NFL Draft may ramp up in the weeks and days before the event, but the goal of selecting the most passionate, talented, and suitable rookies takes an entire year to truly prepare to execute. So, Jaguars GM James Gladstone gained much of his draft edge with the Rams preparing for the event

While it's unlikely that the same prospects who show an aptitude and fit for the Rams will necessarily show a similar fit for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Gladstone can immediately hit the floor running by emulating the Rams draft vetting and selection process. And, it seems that is exactly what Gladstone is implementing already:

While the entire data analytics system that Gladstone would like to create and implement will take time, he has already changed some of the pre-draft checkpoints for the Jaguars. In essence, he is shunting the Top-30 visits used by the team to get face-to-face visits between positional coaches and rookie prospects:

So, why take that step right out of the gate?

It's a matter of senses. People who lose one sense find that their remaining senses grow more refined, giving some level of compensation for the loss. So too, an NFL football team that no longer depends on face-to-face visits between positional coaches and rookie prospects will adapt by refining its scouting process and vetting procedures. In doing so, the team becomes more reliant upon the remaining vetting of prospects before the draft.

Scouts will need to interact with coaches more frequently and intensely. The data analytics process will grow to incorporate the areas previously satisfied by direct meetings. And the feedback loop will ensure that the process is refined to improve with each new iteration.

All steps are more easily achieved by focusing on a technology-driven draft process.

I wouldn't set the bar for the Jaguars draft class of 2025 at a DROY winner just yet. This is James Gladstone's first year drafting with the Jags, after all. But it won't be too long into the future that the Jaguars will have created a process that rivals that of the Los Angeles Rams. But hopefully, that will be several years down the road.

As always, thanks for reading,

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