In 2011, during a player lockout, an unsigned Alex Smith gathered more than two dozen San Francisco 49ers players and held a couple of unofficial minicamps at San Jose State in an effort to get his offensive teammates prepared for the upcoming season.
Six years later, another presumptive starting quarterback for the 49ers is doing the same. Brian Hoyer, who was acquired by the 49ers as free agency kicked off in March, will be holding a similar session with his new teammates. The gathering has been dubbed "Camp Hoyer" and will take place a few weeks before the team reports to training camp on July 27,
according to NBC Sports Bay Area.
The sessions will take place over three days and will likely be used to further familiarize the players on the offensive side of the ball with the playbook and strengthen chemistry prior to the start of training camp.
"Yeah, we're going to get together and do a little thing, I think," Hoyer said last week while speaking to Bay Area media. "It is such a long period of time that you want to get together at least for some period. We're aiming for right in the middle of when we leave and when we come back. We'll get as many guys together as we can. You can't accommodate everybody because people are going all across the country."
The majority of the 49ers' current roster consists of faces who were not on the team last season. Well over a dozen of those new faces are part of the wide receiver, tight end, and running back groups. That includes nine rookies within those groups – drafted and undrafted. It makes sense that Hoyer wants to work more with his new teammates than the current Collective Bargaining Agreement will allow.
49ers players disembarked from the team's practice facility in Santa Clara on Thursday and will not officially reconvene until training camp. Thursday concluded a three-day minicamp which consisted of just two practices during the first two days. The final day just saw players meeting, watching film, and working with head strength and conditioning coach Ray Wright.
Per league rules, Shanahan could have utilized all three days during last week's minicamp for practices, but decided against it.
"I would rather practice every day," the 49ers head coach explained last week. "But, just trying to be smart. I've been a part of many years of that last practice before you get a month off, before everyone goes on vacation, and then you come back for training camp. I just haven't had a lot of...that practice hasn't ever been very productive. Usually, and when it's the last day of school, school's not always that productive and that wouldn't be that big of a deal if that was the only thing you were risking. But, you're risking injuries and I have just always gotten worried. Most teams I've been on you always cut it short. You end up just trying to get off the field and not have an injury."
According to Hoyer, the location of his upcoming informal practices have not yet been determined.
"It's still in the works," the quarterback said. "But we have a good commitment on the amount of guys that are going to be able to make it."
The San Francisco 49ers will hold a mandatory minicamp from June 4 through 6, officially concluding the team's offseason program. After that, the Niners will break for over a month and return to the Santa Clara facilities for training camp in late July.
Between that time, starting quarterbacks will often organize throwing sessions with their receivers in an effort to build chemistry ahead of the rigors of training camp. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy has been unable to participate in such sessions over the last two years. The last overall draft pick in 2022, Purdy had yet to make a name for himself during his first offseason. Last year, he was still recovering from offseason surgery on his throwing arm.
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