Jacksonville (third overall) and Tampa Bay (seventh overall) own some of the earliest picks in the 2014 draft, and the Jaguars' pick, especially, has a chance to set a tone for the first round.
Jacksonville needs a quarterback. But it also could use a top-notch offensive tackle and a defensive end, so which way do the Jaguars go? The Bucs have a new coaching staff, headed by Lovie Smith, and they, too, need a pass-rushing defensive end. A wild card: Would they be interested in drafting a quarterback to replace Mike Glennon, who played respectably as a rookie but may not be seen by the new staff as a long-term answer?
The offensive coordinators for both teams have connections with Fresno State quarterback Derek Carr, especially Bucs play-caller Jeff Tedford.
The Tampa Bay Times reports that Tedford has been a close family friend since 1997, when Derek's brother, David, signed to play at Fresno State, where Tedford was the offensive coordinator. Derek was 6 at the time.
"We're pretty much family," Derek Carr told the Times. "We're close to each other."
Rodger Carr, David's and Derek's dad, remembers Derek Carr doing drills with Tedford.
"Jeff had him out there, doing the footwork drills, dropping back, throwing at targets, dropping balls in trash cans," he told the newspaper. "Jeff's been a part of the family for a long time."
Last month, Tedford and Derek Carr spent a few days together after the Bulldogs' season ended and before Tedford joined the Bucs' staff.
"I think the last time I saw him Derek], he was 12 years old running around the practice field, so that was kind of cool" seeing him Monday at the Reese's [Senior Bowl, Fisch told jaguars.com.
Carr seems unlikely to go No. 3 overall -- or No. 7 overall. But the Bucs pick sixth and the Jaguars seventh in the second round, and Carr could be available at those spots. In that scenario, the Bucs and Jaguars presumably would fill other needs -- such as an offensive tackle and a defensive end -- in the first round, then grab a potential starting quarterback early in the second.
Carr, who measured 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds Monday, led the nation with 5,083 passing yards as a senior in 2013. He threw 50 TD passes and eight picks and completed 68.9 percent of his 659 attempts.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
