GENERAL MANAGER JAMES GLADSTONE
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2025
(On what he likes about the players that were added in free agency) “I think it’s pretty
simple. What we were seeking during pro-free agency was to raise the floor of this football
team, and every player that we pursued and that we’ve now acquired is meeting that
standard. By being nothing more than who they are and who we know them to be, both on
and off the field, they’re going to do exactly what we would hope they’d do and that’s level
up this ecosystem.”
(On what CB Jourdan Lewis brings to the defense) “One of the most exciting elements to
Jourdan Lewis is that every offensive coordinator that I’ve come in contact with has always
highlighted him as somebody who they have to account for in their game planning, and
when you turn on the film, it’s easy to see why. Now, one of the things that we really wanted
to do for our defensive backfield is bring a veteran presence with a level of doggedness and
toughness that was going to level up our current style of play. Jourdan is somebody who we
believe highly in to bring that and offer that skillset to our football team.”
(On how bringing in Lewis will affect whether CB Jarrian Jones will play inside or outside)
“One of the things we’re valuing is versatility and with both of those guys, we feel like they
have the flexibility to play both inside and out. I think we’ll see how that takes shape over
the course of this offseason and then the beginning of next season. But between the two of
them, both of them are players that we find value in and the versatility between the two of
them just allows us a little bit more flexibility.”
(On how rare OL Patrick Mekari’s skillset is playing all five offensive line positions) “That
was insanely rare. I don’t know that that’s something that typically comes up on the market
at a cost point that’s affordable enough to pursue. Really, we were very disciplined in our
approach and how we spent this offseason. Patrick is somebody who—he wasn’t offered
the opportunity or the backdrop of being a draft pick coming out. He’s earned everything
he’s gotten, and he earned this opportunity. His versatility, obviously, there’s always
attrition on the offensive line throughout the course of the season and obviously, he’ll allow
us a lot of flexibility on the offensive side of the ball to feel like we’re never in a bind
because we can move him around if necessary. But at the same time, he’s going to be
slotted in as a starter on the interior of our OL at this point.”
(On whether building the roster through the draft is his own philosophy or that of
ownership) “That’s my experience most recently with the Los Angeles Rams and that’s
something I feel I have a unique capacity to take on with the current position that we hold,
which is 10 picks this year, 11 picks next year. So, with pro-free agency, we wanted to set
ourselves up so that we feel like we have the flexibility to address any position we want to at
any pick point that lies on the horizon and it feels like we’re currently in a position to do just
that.”
(On the decision to release former TE Evan Engram and trade former WR Christian Kirk)
“Yeah, really have so much respect for the people and the players that both Christian and
Evan are, and they meant a lot to the locker room. We’ll continue to bring those types of
people and players into our ecosystem, but we needed a little bit more flexibility to address
the larger scale roster after some departures across the OL as well. So, that was a big part
in that. But we do feel like we’re in a better position today than we were a couple of weeks
ago to make it so that when we enter each decision at each pick point in April we can
continue to level up where we are from a personnel perspective.”
(On what WR Dyami Brown brings to the wide receiver room) “Yeah, I think it’s easy to look
at Dyami’s career path and trajectory and know that he’s ascending, right? The way that he
closed out last season was nothing short of impressive and we look for him to carry that
into really his one-year contract with us. He took a bet on himself that a year from now,
given the opportunity that he sees here with the Jacksonville Jaguars, he’s going to take
another step and earn an even larger contract. What he provides just on a vertical plane
and in run-after-catch scenarios is something that is extremely exciting, extremely alluring
for our offensive staff and I think that he’ll be able to take another step to expand his game.
We’ll see him come to life in the same ways that he did towards the end of the season with
Washington this last season right off the bat while also expanding his role to fit what we’re
intending on doing this this coming season.”
(On TE Hunter Long’s potential and what he saw from him in Los Angeles) “Yeah, I think so.
Hunter is somebody who also has dealt with adversity throughout his time dating back to
Boston College, his early onboarding in Miami, gets traded to Los Angeles and he suffers an
injury there, and it wasn’t until last season that he was really able to be a participant from
start to finish of a regular season, and really showed what his skillset can be in the NFL. It’s
something that we value and that’s an in-line presence that also isn’t below the line as a
pass catcher and can certainly take another step in that phase of the game. But his
familiarity, as well as [TE] Johnny Mundt, with the system, is something that we value and
allow that group as a whole to continue to be interchangeable and not feel like we’re ever
hamstrung in any one phase of the game offensively,”
(On his expectations for TE Brenton Strange this coming season) “Yeah, I think any fan
that’s following closely would label Brenton as somebody who’s ascending and ready to
take another step given the opportunity to do so. He is someone who embodies exactly
what we’re hunting up, so we’re glad to have him already on the roster. His strain, his finish
on blocks are something that we’re really excited about. When he’s got the ball in his
hands, he’s not interested in going down when the first defender approaches.”
(On how he would evaluate the safety room after the addition of S Eric Murray) “Yeah, I
think the defensive backfield, as a whole, has gotten better with the addition of Jourdan
and Eric. One of the things between the two of them is that their experience, their stability,
it offers exactly what’s needed on that back end. When you look at safety in particular, the
root word there is ‘safe,’ and that’s exactly what Eric provides. So, we’re excited to bring him
into the ecosystem and I know he’s excited to take on a more notable leadership role than
what he’s had in previous years.”
(On how he would assess the offensive line after addressing the vacancies during free
agency) “I do think that we answered some questions there with our decisions here in pro-
free agency, addressing both center and guard, as well as the tackle position. Clearly by
signing three of those players, and that being the most at any one position over the course
of the free agent window, we’re setting the standard for what we’re actually looking to do
and that doesn’t count offensive line out of the equation in the draft either. But at the same
time, that’s another position that does have attrition throughout the course of a season, so
we’ll never feel like we’ve got enough.”
(On how he views Brown’s place on the roster given the value of his contract) “Yeah, I think
the market dictates a lot of the price points and when you’ve got a receiver who gets a
contract elsewhere, everybody’s going to start working off of that. So, it’s not like you’re
necessarily in control of what that looks like on an annual basis necessarily. I will say that
we do expect him to have a strong output and one that, given the opportunity that currently
lies in front of him, is very vivid and that he’ll be getting plugged a bit more than he was
probably used to in years prior.”
(On potentially adding former Rams WR Cooper Kupp to the roster) “I’ve got a ton of
respect for Cooper. He was actually in the first draft that I ever had the chance to be a part
of and throughout the course of his career in Los Angeles, he is one of the purist-to-form
wide receivers, change the dynamic for what’s actually asked of those guys in modern
football, and I think at this point in time, it’s fair to say, in pro-free agency, we’re always
open to every opportunity that presents itself, but time will truly tell.”
(On working with the current personnel staff the last few weeks) “It’s been an absolute
blast. I think the collaboration over the course of the last three weeks has been something
we’ve held at a premium, and looking at our pro scouting staff and our football
administration staff blending with our coaching staff over that window of time, it’s
something that I feel a level of pride in, being able to engage with all of those groups in such
a short window of time and actually walking into the pro-free agency window with some
unknowns, right? There were some holes on our roster and unlike the draft, an NFL pro-free
agent has the chance to say, ‘You know what, I appreciate the offer, but I’m going
somewhere else,’right? In the draft, you send a name into a system and they’re now a part
of your team. So, that was a dynamic that walking into that door on Monday, you feel like,
you know what, we’re going to have to adjust today. Well, lo and behold, we had nine
names that we were prioritizing and we ended up with nine players that ended up on our
roster as of today. So, seeing that plan come to life, being executed in the way that it was,
certainly something that at this point in time, I’m proud of. But I can’t wait for these players
to engage with the rest of the team, get out on the grass in the fall because it’s not the
offseason that we’re looking to win from a perception standpoint. We’re looking to win
football games this fall and can’t wait for the next phase of this in the draft to truly see what
the shape of the roster is going to look like and then get everybody out on the grass together
here later in the spring.”
(On what stands out about this cohort of nine free agency signings) “Yeah, I think you’ve
heard me say the phrase ‘intangibly rich’ quite a few times, right? That was no different in
our approach to pro-free agency. It was no different to who it was that we were prioritizing
and we sat down with each of those players individually here today, and that sentiment and
what we knew them to be, whether it was speaking to us on the film or in our sourced
information behind the scenes, these guys are built right and by being nothing more than
who they are, we can feel that they’re going to level us up.”
(On bringing in OL Robert Hainsey, who had previously played under Head Coach Liam
Coen in Tampa Bay) “It was a massive priority, right? That’s some weight off the shoulders
of [QB] Trevor [Lawrence] at the line of scrimmage, that now because of the familiarity from
Robert, he doesn’t have to bear as a quarterback. At the same time, Robert got one op
[opportunity] to start this past season versus the New Orleans Saints, and I’d encourage
anybody and everybody to watch that game and understand why it was a player of interest.
Think about the intangible elements in the back of your mind as it relates to a performance
on the field, and you’ll see that clear as day in that game. Robert was not going to allow that
opportunity—he didn’t know how many he was going to get last season—to make it so that
by the time that pro-free agency kicked off, that bell rang on Monday, that he was going to
be given an op because somebody saw exactly what we did in him and that’s a player that
does not quit. The whistle blows and he’s playing through it, and that’s something that we
really, really value.”
(On which position groups he’s looking to add to through the draft) “Yeah, we’ve got 10
picks in this year’s draft. We’re going to have to have some spots that are actually open for
them to insert. So, if you add a veteran at this point, could be just standing in the way. We’re
going to allow these rookies to get a chance to get out on the field and help us this coming
fall.”
