2nd pick says more surgery not needed
Inside linebacker Reuben Foster, the second of two firstround picks by the 49ers on Thursday, said Friday that reports he might require a second shoulder surgery “are not accurate at all” and that his rehabilitation is on schedule after he underwent a procedure to repair his rotator cuff before the NFL combine in February.
“I’m making good progress,” Foster said. “I’ll be limited in OTAs. In training camp I’ll be a full go. If it’s my decision, I think I can go now.”
Foster’s medical file partly explains why he slipped to the No. 31 pick in the first round of the draft. However, off-thefield issues were also a factor.
He was sent home from the combine after he got into an argument with a hospital employee during his physical. And he also tested positive for a diluted urine sample at the combine, which the NFL counts as a positive drug test.
Foster’s draft party Thursday night in Miami was sponsored by a tobacco and marijuana vaporizer company. He was asked about the decision to attach himself to the company.
“It’s a new leaf and I’m not answering that,” Foster said. “I’m not answering that. I’m sorry. Next question.”
But Foster was otherwise happy to talk. In fact, he shared a humorous story about the eventful moments just before he learned the 49ers were drafting him after trading up three spots to No. 31.
Before 49ers general manager John Lynch contacted him, Foster was on the phone with the Saints, who planned to pick him at No. 32. He clicked over to speak with Lynch and didn’t know the 49ers had jumped ahead of New Orleans in the draft order: “I said, ‘Man, coach you’re the 34th pick. It’s too late. The New Orleans Saints are about to get me.’ ”
So what did Foster tell the Saints once Lynch told him the 49ers were picking him. Was that awkward?
“No,” Foster said. “I hung up.”