It’s easy to forget just how good of a player Washington’s LB Reuben Foster is, but with the news of him being lifted from the PUP list on Sunday, it seems like a good time to revisit some of his past performances.
After being selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the first round of the 2017 draft, Foster quickly became one of the best linebackers in the NFL, racking up 72 total tackles in just 10 games. According to Pro Football Focus, this had him ranked as the 10th best LB in the league, and easily the best among all rookies that season.
In 2017, Reuben Foster led all rookie LBs with a grade of 81.2
He was the 10th highest-graded LB overall. pic.twitter.com/bb4j09MX11
— PFF (@PFF) August 9, 2020
It’s easy to say that Foster will have an impact in Washington once he gets back in the groove, but seeing as he hasn’t played in any regularl-season games since 2018, can we reasonably expect that he’ll be able to hit the ground running this season? If you’re to listen to linebackers coach Steven Mills, they’ve been treating this offseason so that he can do just that.
Getting up to game-speed will undoubtedly take a couple of games, and without a preseason to knock the rust off, we should temper expectations a bit while Foster gets re-acclimated. Still, Washington would not have made this move unless Foster is really ready to take the field soon, and it seems that he’s very close.
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