The Jacksonville Jaguars on Friday finally announced the hire of a new general manager. They hired Los Angeles Rams director of college scouting James Gladstone, and passed over 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams.
This is both good and bad news for San Francisco.
The good news is they get to keep Williams, a bright mind who has risen up through their organization’s scouting department and front office over the last 14 years. There’s a real chance Williams, who came to San Francisco in 2011 as an assistant in the scouting department, is on the short list of people who could someday replace general manager John Lynch. Not needing to find a replacement for Williams makes the 49ers’ offseason and draft preparation at least a little bit easier.
The bad news is there won’t be any additional draft picks coming their way in 2025 and 2026. As part of Resolution JC-2A, which was established by the NFL in 2020 and aimed to incentivize minority hires in head coach and general manager roles, the 49ers would have been awarded a third-round compensatory pick in 2025 and 2026 had Williams been hired as Jacksonville’s GM.
It’s unlikely this will be the last time Williams is involved in a general manager search. For now he’ll be able to continue helping San Francisco prepare for the 2025 NFL draft and beyond.