ASHBURN, Va. — A little over 48 hours after he was released on bond, the Washington Redskins claimed linebacker Reuben Foster off waivers from the San Francisco 49ers.
Foster was arrested at the team’s hotel in Tampa late Saturday night on a suspicion of domestic violence charge. He posted $2,000 bond on Sunday and was released with orders to stay away from the accuser. The 49ers waived Foster Sunday morning.
This is the third arrest for Foster in 2018. In January, he was arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession in Alabama. In February, he was arrested on charges of felony domestic violence stemming from an incident at his home in Los Gatos, California. He also pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor weapons charge related to the initial domestic violence allegations.
This domestic violence charge was eventually dropped when the accuser recanted her statement.
Foster was sentenced to two years probation and over 200 hours of community service on the weapons charge. He completed a first-time offenders course to have the marijuana charge dropped, but he was suspended for the first two games of the season for being in violation of the NFL’s policy on substance abuse and personal conduct.
Foster could face another suspension from the NFL for this latest incident.
The Redskins released a statement from Senior VP of Player Personnel Doug Williams on the move:
“Today we have claimed the rights to LB Reuben Foster. The Redskins fully understand the severity of the recent allegations made against Reuben. If true, you can be sure these allegations are nothing our organization would ever condone. Let me be clear, Reuben will have to go through numerous steps including the full legal process, an investigation and potential discipline from the NFL, as well as meetings with counselors associated with the team before he will ever have the opportunity to wear the Burgundy and Gold as a player. That being said, we decided to investigate the situation with Reuben further by claiming his rights after candid conversations with a number of his ex-Alabama teammates and current Redskins players who were overwhelmingly supportive of us taking this chance. Nothing is promised to Reuben, but we are hopeful being around so many of his former teammates and friends will eventually provide him with the best possible environment to succeed both personally and professionally.”
Foster was the 31st overall pick in the 2017 draft and appeared in 16 games over the past two seasons with 101 tackles.
