San Francisco 49ers to release Reuben Foster after domestic violence arrest

The San Francisco 49ers announced on Sunday morning they are going to release second-year linebacker Reuben Foster. The move comes less than 12 hours after Foster was arrested on first-degree misdemeanor domestic-violence battery charges stemming from an alleged confrontation at the 49ers’ team hotel in Tampa Bay Saturday night.

Earlier in the year, domestic violence charges against Foster were dropped after the alleged victim testified that she had lied about her initial testimony, which stated that Foster hit her up to 10 times and dragged her out of his house. The alleged victim in Saturday’s arrest appears to be same woman.

In 2018, Foster still served a two-game suspension based on an earlier marijuana charge.

Foster was considered one of the best linebacker prospects in the entire 2017 NFL Draft class. Many believed that on football skills alone, Foster had a good chance of being a top-five talent. However, character issues were abound, including a strange altercation at the NFL Combine. Foster was still on the board when the Detroit Lions were on the clock with the 21st overall pick. Detroit opted to go with linebacker Jarrad Davis instead of Foster, who fell to the 49ers at 31.