Raiders to sign QB Brian Hoyer to two-year deal

Weeks after Josh McDaniels secured a Jimmy Garoppolo reunion, the second-year Raiders HC is bringing in another familiar face. The Raiders are signing Brian Hoyer, according to his agency (on Twitter).

Hoyer agreed to a two-year deal with Las Vegas on Tuesday. The Raiders attempted to keep Jarrett Stidham, but the ex-Patriots draftee preferred the opportunity the Broncos will provide. Now, another ex-McDaniels Pats pupil will head west.

Hoyer and Garoppolo did not cross paths in New England; the latter’s trade to the 49ers in 2017 led Hoyer out of San Francisco and back to Foxborough. Hoyer finished out his first Patriots tenure with McDaniels, who rejoined the Pats in the 2011 playoffs after the Rams did not bring him back following a rough season as St. Louis’ offensive coordinator. Hoyer caught up with McDaniels again in 2017 and played four seasons under the longtime Pats OC. The two will work together again soon.

The Patriots dropped Hoyer earlier this offseason, taking on nearly $2M in dead money to do so. New England has second-year QB Bailey Zappe in place behind Mac Jones. This will lead to yet another opportunity for the veteran backup. Hoyer, 37, has been in the NFL since joining the Patriots as a 2009 undrafted free agent.

Enjoying two stints as Tom Brady‘s backup and having been a starter for a few teams in between, Hoyer backed up Cam Newton in 2020 and Jones for the past two seasons. Given Garoppolo’s injury history, Hoyer could become a key figure for the Raiders. Hoyer seeing starts would be interesting at this stage of his career; the 15th-year veteran has started three games over the past five seasons and only finished one of those. Hoyer also suffered a concussion early last season, having replaced Jones after the starter’s high ankle sprain, and did not return from New England’s IR. The October concussion was not expected to end Hoyer’s season, and NBC Sports’ Tom Curran said during a recent WEEI appearance the backup believed he was ready to return (video link). He remained on IR, however.

For his career, Hoyer has made 40 starts. He played a relevant role in the mid-2010s, guiding his hometown Browns into rare playoff contention and then leading the Texans to the AFC South title a year later. Cleveland was 7-6 in Hoyer’s starts in 2014, despite Josh Gordon missing most of that stretch due to a suspension, but the Browns sat the veteran for then-rookie Johnny Manziel. Hoyer finished 2015 with a 19-7 TD-INT ratio in Houston, but after a playoff loss to the Chiefs, the Texans replaced him with Brock Osweiler.

Holding the No. 7 overall pick, the Raiders are also doing extensive work on this year’s rookie class. It certainly will be possible Las Vegas will finish this offseason with Garoppolo, Hoyer and a rookie signal-caller — perhaps a first-round pick on a developmental track — on the depth chart. As of now, though, the team’s post-Derek Carr QB room is full-on Patriots West.