Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Gruden: ‘No guarantee’ Foster ever plays for Washington
ASHBURN, VA. >> Coach Jay Gruden said the Washington Redskins will continue to investigate Rueben Foster’s legal problems amid the outcry from signing the linebacker following his domestic violence arrest.
Gruden added there is “no guarantee” Foster ever plays for Washington.
“We accept, obviously, the questions, but we want to let the process play out and see what happens and get to the bottom of it,” Gruden said Wednesday. “He’s got a lot of work to do, personally, with the team, with the NFL, with himself, before he even thinks about playing football again.”
Foster, 24, was arrested Saturday night at San Francisco’s team hotel in Tampa and charged with one count of first-degree misdemeanor domestic violence. Washington was the only team to put in a claim for Foster after the San Francisco 49ers released him Monday.
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, who was Washington’s offensive coordinator from 2010-2013, said he was a bit surprised a team claimed Foster. Gruden said the “team decision” was made to add Foster knowing there would be blowback.
“At the end of the day we decided to make the move, and we’ll deal with the outcry, so to speak,” Gruden said. “But for the most part, this is a young athlete, a young person who got himself into some trouble, and we want to find out exactly what happened.”
Foster reported to the team’s facility on Wednesday to take a physical but is on the Commissioner Exempt list and while on it, he cannot practice or attend games.
Gruden said after practice Wednesday the organization did not speak to the victim. He did say the Redskins spoke “a little bit” to Tampa police and would continue to look into Foster’s situation at the same time as the NFL holds its investigation.
In a statement Tuesday, senior vice president of player personnel Doug Williams said the Redskins spoke to former Alabama teammates of Foster’s before signing him. Washington has seven other Alabama products on its roster, and none of the players who spoke to reporters Wednesday acknowledged being asked by president Bruce Allen, Williams or Gruden about Foster.