SANTA CLARA -- John Lynch made a phone call to the Cleveland Browns to express some level of interest in wide receiver Josh Gordon, the San Francisco 49ers general manager said on Sunday.
Lynch said the 49ers are going through their standard due diligence to determine whether to pursue a trade for Gordon, whom the Browns announced Saturday would be released in the coming days.
Gordon is signed through this season with a base salary of $790,000. The Browns are entertaining trade offers for Gordon, who has played in just 11 games since his breakout 2013 season and reportedly prefers the 49ers or Cowboys as destinations.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Gordon showed up Saturday at the Browns facility with a hamstring injury. He told the team he sustained the injury during a promotional shoot, which was not a team event, Pro Football Talk reported, citing a league source.
There is a lot for the 49ers to consider, including how much Gordon can be relied upon. Coach Kyle Shanahan served as Cleveland’s offensive coordinator in 2014.
[RATTO: Why Gordon is too risky]
The NFL originally suspended Gordon for the entire 2014 season due to a violation of the league’s policy on substances of abuse. That suspension was later reduced to 10 games. But the Browns suspended him for the final game of the season for skipping a walk-through one day before a game against the Baltimore Ravens.
San Francisco 49ers
Find the latest San Francisco 49ers news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
Gordon was suspended for the entire 2015 season. He also was suspended for the first four games of 2016, and entered an in-patient rehabilitation facility. After missing two full seasons, he finally was reinstated for the final five games of last season.
In 41 career NFL games since entering the NFL in 2012, Gordon has caught 180 passes for 3,106 yards and 16 touchdowns. In 2013, he appeared in 14 games and caught 87 passes for a league-leading 1,646 yards and nine TDs.
