The Seahawks will work out free agent linebacker Reuben Foster today, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Foster has not seen game action since the 2018 season.
A first-round pick of the 49ers back in 2017, Foster lived up to his billing in his first professional season, appearing in 10 games (all starts) and racking up 72 total tackles en route to a third-place finish in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. Pro Football Focus was especially fond of his performance and assigned him a terrific 81.2 overall score, including high marks for his work as a run stopper and in coverage.
Things began to go south in 2018, however. Foster was arrested three times that year, and after the third arrest in November 2018 — which stemmed from a domestic violence charge — the 49ers waived him. Washington made the highly controversial decision to claim him off waivers, and he spent the remainder of the campaign on the commissioner’s exempt list.
In January 2019, Florida prosecutors dropped the November charge due to insufficient evidence, and Foster was reinstated several months later. It seemed the Alabama product would have a chance to reestablish himself as a frontline ‘backer in the nation’s capital, but in his first practice with Washington, Foster suffered a torn ACL, LCL, and MCL. He also dealt with nerve damage that left him without feeling in his toes for several months. He missed all of the 2019 season, and though he finally returned to the practice field in August 2020, it was clear that he was not anywhere close to his old self, and he spent all of 2020 on IR.
Foster took a few workouts last September and also auditioned for the Dolphins this April, but he remains on the open market. The Seahawks currently have 2020 first-rounder Jordyn Brooks penciled in as their middle linebacker without much proven depth behind him, so it can’t hurt to see if their former division rival still has anything to offer.
Incorrigible
As a player, Foster is great. At least, he was, before being out of action. I would be very interested to see if he has kept his athleticism that made him a good contributor in those years.
His decision making, however, leaves something to be desired. I don’t know nor will I pretend to know who is “more responsible” for his alleged domestic back and forth with his partner, but at the very least it certainly shows poor judgement to continue to be involved following them and even worse judgement to sneak her up into the team hotel. I hope that he has learned some lessons from that, but that will remain to be seen-if he evens signs. Seattle kicks the tires a lot on unsigned guys, but in many cases leaves it at that.
Pete Carroll is the patron saint of football lost causes.
This move better than KJ. damn
Good to hear that the Seahawks were able to
SANDWICH
in a workout for
REUBEN !!
No thank you