Silence on Foster deafening for 49ers

It has been more than a week and still no word from the 49ers’ leaders about the arrest of starting linebacker Reuben Foster.

Oh, there was the boilerplate statement on the day of the arrest Feb. 11: “The San Francisco 49ers’ organization is aware of the report regarding Reuben Foster. We take matters of this nature seriously and are gathering all pertinent information.”

The 49ers perfected the art of the bland post-arrest statement during the Trent Baalke years, when the team led the NFL in arrests.

But this is a new regime, one that is supposed to be doing things differently. So it’s a little

surprising that there has been no further statement, no appearance by general manager John Lynch to clarify the 49ers’ position, no promises that the 49ers are going to be a responsible member of the community.

In the week-plus since Foster’s arrest in Los Gatos on suspicion of domestic violence, making criminal threats and possession of an assault rifle, the issue hasn’t gone away. Instead, it has festered and been magnified by events in the real world. Such as the massacre at a high school in Florida, carried out with an assault rifle. Such as the daily barrage of stories concerning assault and harassment and threatening behavior against women.

We know that Lynch is at work. He reportedly met with Foster last week, after the 23year old was bailed out of jail. Lynch took the time to release a statement when the 49ers announced they had signed center Daniel Kilgore to an extension.

But radio silence on the big issue.

So when the 49ers’ leadership arrives in Indianapolis next week for the NFL combine, the first question asked likely will be about Foster. And the second, and the third, and …

If we want to “stick to football,” the main question will be: “Do the 49ers need to take a middle linebacker because last year’s draft pick is so unreliable?”

The Foster situation isn’t going away, and the 49ers have to know that. They went through years of Baalke turtling and pretending everything is fine — even though it wasn’t.

The new leadership seemed to be trying to change things. In April, when cornerback Tramaine Brock was arrested on domestic-violence charges, Lynch released him the next day, saying: “We did what we thought was the right situation. … It was not easy, but we felt it was something that we needed to do.”

Though Brock was not charged, the 49ers reportedly had done their own investigation and believed there was enough there to make a decision (the case was dismissed for a lack of evidence). They undoubtedly have done the same in the Foster incident. But this is the story of two different players, with different talent levels and different personal investment. (The 49ers hand-picked Foster, using a precious firstround pick, and vouched for his character along the way.)

The 49ers knew they were taking a risk when they drafted Foster, who came with baggage. He was kicked out of last year’s combine for a diluted drug test and then got into an altercation with a hospital worker.

Now he has put the 49ers in a troubling position. Prior to this month’s arrest, Foster — already in the NFL’s crosshairs because of his actions at the combine — was arrested for marijuana possession in Alabama. That was another case of grossly poor judgment (we don’t much care about pot charges in California, but Foster is from Alabama and should be wellversed in the laws there). He has a hearing on that charge Feb. 28.

The incident involving the most recent arrest is in the hands of the Santa Clara district attorney. If Foster is charged, his arraignment will be April 12, according to the district attorney’s office, four days before the 49ers’ offseason program begins. The case has the potential to be a protracted and ugly situation, one that could damage the promises by the 49ers regime of a fresh start and new priorities.

Cutting Foster would be painful from a football standpoint; another team would take him, and that could haunt the 49ers for years. But keeping him also can hurt the team, not just in the community but on the field as well.

Foster almost certainly will face a suspension of some type by the NFL. As we know, Commissioner Roger Goodell’s standard for suspension doesn’t have to correlate with any kind of criminal charge. Under the NFL’s rules for substance abuse, Foster could face a suspension of between four and six games. Under the league’s policy for domestic-violence incidents, first-time offenders face a suspension of six games. Second-time offenders face a lifetime ban from the league.

So even if the 49ers stand by Foster, as it appears now that they probably will given the past week of inaction, they might have to expect that he will not be available for much of the season. During suspensions, players have no contact with the team, creating a new set of worries. And all of that is assuming the linebacker can stay healthy when he’s on the field, which he wasn’t able to do through much of his first season.

Foster has established a clear pattern of bad behavior and poor judgment, which means the 49ers never will be fully confident that he can stay out of trouble. He could be their next Aldon Smith: a promising linebacker who can’t be trusted to make the right choice. One who seems to be perpetually on the verge of self-destructing.

How are the 49ers going to handle Foster? So far, all we hear is silence.