James Gladstone on the reason for Jaguars' quiet start to free agency

It’s been a relatively quiet start to free agency for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The only outside addition made was the signing of running back Chris Rodriguez, who was non-tendered as a restricted free agent this offseason by Washington.

Meanwhile, the Jaguars have seen Devin Lloyd, Travis Etienne, Greg Newsome, and Andrew Wingard sign elsewhere.

So why have the Jaguars made so few signings? During his free agency process, GM James Gladstone explained the thought process.

“We’re at a stage now where a higher volume of draft capital is what we’re hunting up, and those compensatory picks,” Gladstone said, “When you think about high-priced free agents of ours who ended up signing elsewhere, well-deserved contracts. … They did their part to put themselves in sound positions to earn that. Excited for all those guys. In return, by not signing any outside free agents, we recoup 2027 draft capital.”

Every draft, the NFL awards at least 32 additional picks for certain players who go from one team to another during the previous offseason’s free agency period.

In short, if a team loses more compensatory free agents than they sign, they will get a draft pick in return for the difference.

Not every free agent is a compensatory free agent; there is a formula that takes into account the playing time of that free agent, their salary, and any postseason honors they received. Essentially, the better the player, the better the draft pick that the team receives for losing them.

By losing Lloyd, Etienne, and Newsome in free agency, the Jaguars are projected to get a good-sized boost in the 2027 NFL draft.

Over the Cap is currently projecting that the Jaguars will get a 2027 fourth-round compensatory pick for losing Lloyd. A fifth-round compensatory pick for Etienne and a sixth-round compensatory pick for Newsome.

Those compensatory picks not only give the Jaguars more selections in the 2027 draft, but they also provide Gladstone with more flexibility to make trades.

“On the surface, you would think, ‘okay, you’re going to make picks in 2027,’ whereas in reality, those draft picks, having more of them actually allows you the luxury of remaining in the hunt at different intervals throughout the entire calendar year for acquiring players,” Gladstone said.

Gladstone noted that the Tim Patrick and Jakobi Meyers deals made during training camp and in-season could, in part, be done because of the number of picks Jacksonville had in 2026. Without much draft capital, a team could potentially be less willing to make trades.

Beyond the compensatory picks, Gladstone mentioned as well that the roster is in a good position, where an overhaul, like we saw last offseason, is not required this time around.

So although this approach for fans isn’t exciting, there’s a reason for it, and it enhances Jacksonville’s ability to continue shaping the roster well-beyond the initial wave of free agency.

This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: NFL free agency: James Gladstone addresses Jaguars quiet start to free agency

James Gladstone on the reason for Jaguars’ quiet start to free agency

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