When the 49ers hired Jim Harbaugh as head coach, there was plenty of talk that the 49ers would look to acquire Buccaneers quarterback Josh Johnson, who had played for Harbaugh at the University of San Diego.

With his path in Tampa Bay blocked by 2009 first-round pick Josh Freeman, Johnson, an Oakland native, would welcome a return to both Harbaugh and his native Bay Area.

“I’d get to go home, be with my family, play for a coach that changed my life and play for a team that I grew up loving,” Johnson said on Thursday. “But reality of the situation is this is a business and we’re all seeing it with this lockout. So I’m a part of the Buccaneers and I have one year left.”

Johnson is scheduled to earn $596,833 in base salary in the final season on his four-year, $1.877 million rookie contract.

After sitting his rookie season, Johnson started four games in 2009, completing 63-of-125 pass attempts for 685 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions. As the No. 2 quarterback behind Freeman in 2010, Johnson completed 14-of-16 attempts for 111 yards, and has added 187 yards on 26 attempts over the 2009 and 2010 seasons.