NFL rumors: Jets and 49ers in on Brian Hoyer

 Brian Hoyer is not necessarily a long-term answer under center, but he should not lack for suitors in free agency.

Upon taking over for an injured Jay Cutler last season, Brian Hoyer topped 300 passing yards in all four games he started and finished for the Chicago Bears. A broken left forearm ended his season though, and Hoyer is now a free agent.

A return to the Bears could be on the radar for Hoyer, but their interest in Mike Glennon seems to make it unlikely. At 31 years old he should have no trouble finding a job as a backup, or as a short-term starter, and yet another thin free agent market for quarterbacks could make Hoyer more highly sought after than expected.

On that note, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network has cited the New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers as two teams with strong interest in Hoyer. The Jets are highly unlikely to go with Bryce Petty or Christian Hackenberg as their starting quarterback in 2017, so any veteran option is probably on their radar.

But the 49ers are an intriguing fit, since Hoyer started a career-high 13 games for the Cleveland Browns when head coach Kyle Shanahan was offensive coordinator there in 2014. Hoyer also set a career-highs in passing yards (3,326) with a league-leading 13.7 yards per completion in 2014, while completed 55.3 percent of his passes with 12 touchdowns and 13 interceptions over 14 total games.

The 49ers can go any direction they want to at quarterback, with no one under contract right now and plenty of salary cap space. That includes taking one with the No. 2 overall pick in April, using that pick to get Kirk Cousins from the Washington Redskins in a trade and anything in between.

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Hoyer would be one of those in-between options under center, for the 49ers or any other team. But he could easily be a Week 1 starter wherever he lands, which speaks to the desperation a lot of teams have in search of competent quarterback play.