{"id":294858,"date":"2026-06-03T20:14:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T20:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/294858\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T20:14:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T20:14:14","slug":"jaguars-polarizing-move-has-set-james-gladstone-up-to-look-like-a-genius","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/294858\/","title":{"rendered":"Jaguars\u2019 polarizing move has set James Gladstone up to look like a genius"},"content":{"rendered":"

It didn\u2019t take long for James Gladstone to make a big move as the Jacksonville Jaguars general manager. During his first NFL Draft, in 2025, the first-time GM pulled off a huge trade to move up to No. 2 to select Travis Hunter<\/a>. The trade, and all of the other moves Gladstone made last year paid off, because the Jags finished 13-4 and were a play away from a playoff win.<\/p>\n

The impressive season earned Gladstone and first-year head coach Liam Coen a ton of praise. However, the NFL world is fickle, with criticism coming just as fast as the praise. Gladstone learned that during the 2026 Draft. After a year of praise, the general manager caught heat <\/a>for his 2026 draft haul.<\/p>\n

The most criticized selection was Jacksonville\u2019s first pick<\/a>, tight end Nate Boerkircher, who was drafted in the second round with the 56th-overall pick. The pick was immediately called a massive reach, and draft analysts were left asking what is Gladstone doing.<\/p>\n

While time will tell who is right, Gladstone is starting to get more support for the pick, and the season hasn\u2019t even started yet. In a recent Sports Illustrated piece<\/a>, NFL writer Conor Orr laid out 100 bold predictions for the 2026 season. One of the predictions was that Nate Boerkircher will prove to be worth a second-round pick.<\/p>\n

Nate Boerkircher predicted to prove Jaguars right in rookie season<\/p>\n

Orr\u2019s argument for Boerkircher was simple: the tight end will be a day-one contributor<\/a> for a playoff contender and will emerge as one of the league\u2019s best blocking tight ends as a rookie. The writer actually predicted, \u201cBoerkircher, who went 56th to Jacksonville, will be one of the highest-graded run-blocking tight ends by Pro Football Focus.\u201c<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the good about Boerkircher’s game that has been highlighted since he was drafted: his blocking. However, there\u2019s also a belief that he has some untapped potential as a receiver that wasn\u2019t on display in college because of how he was used. <\/p>\n

While Boerkircher only caught 19 passes for 198 yards with three touchdowns on the Aggie offense last year, he had a separation rate of 86.4 percent, showing that he wasn’t targeted enough despite the fact that he was open more often than not. <\/p>\n

With the former Texas A&M standout in the fold, the Jaguars can create matchup problems with 12 (two tight ends) and 13 (three tight ends personnel<\/a>, as they could either deploy him as a blocker or a pass-catcher opposite Brenton Strange. <\/p>\n

Liam Coen will certainly find a way to utilize Boerkircher\u2018s talent if it\u2019s there. The tight end has been making Jacksonville happy with his early performance during the offseason program<\/a>, so he could be on his way to making James Gladstone look like a genius.<\/p>\n

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