49ers coach on Foster: ‘A tough situation’
Kyle Shanahan speaks at combine on arrests, Garoppolo and free agency.
INDIANAPOLIS » Coach Kyle Shanahan got his chance to address Reuben Foster’s offseason arrests for the first time while sitting down with local media at the 2018 NFL Combine on Thursday.
“He has put us in a tough situation,” Shanahan said. “Hopefully it works out for all sides. Doing what we can to help improve him in those areas and give him the best chance for that stuff not to happen.”
Foster’s most recent arrest came Feb. 11 when the linebacker was accused of domestic violence, making threats and possession of an assaultweapon. Shanahan and general manager John Lynchmet with Foster shortly after the incident.
“Just talking to him about how these things happen, why you get in these situations and just the responsibility that everything has,” Shanahan said of the crux of the discussion. “You guys know I can’t get into any of it. Reuben was great for us when he was around and things have happened since he’s been gone and those are things we have to address, things we need to make sure that he learns how to do the right way.”
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office has not announced whether it will file charges against Foster, and it has until March 13 to decide on those offenses, which can be classified as misdemeanors or felonies.
Foster’s arraignment on his marijuana possession charge in Alabama was pushed from Wednesday to the March 21 plea docket.
“I want to help Reuben out, just like I want to help any of our players out, but it’s a two-way street and they gotta meet us there,” Shanahan said, “and there comes a lot of responsibility with that.”
Shanahan acknowledged the reality that Foster could play his way off the team with similar behavior in the future — “That is realistic. If I said it wasn’t, that wouldn’t be very smart of me” — and that the 49ers must prepare for a scenario without Foster in case the league suspends him for part of his second season.
“Any time you’ve gotten in trouble — again we’re talking about a case, so I don’t know whether it could happen or not — but if any of that stuff does come out you’re subject to be suspended from the league,” Shanahan said. “Any time that starts happening, regardless of what they decide, that’s always a risk. So we’re very well aware of that and we have to take that into account.”
• For John Lynch, this year’s NFL Combine brings a different kind of liberation.
In 2017, his first combine as 49ers generalmanager, he called not having a quarterback “liberating.”
“I’m always an optimist and I was trying to be one there,” Lynch said Thursday. “The idea was we could shape it the way we wanted to.”
The 49ers have certainly shaped the quarterback position to their desire, delivering Lynch and Shanahan a new sense of liberation with Jimmy Garoppolo locked in long term. A handful of teams in Indianapolis this week don’t know who their quarterback will be in 2018, hoping to find the one in a quarterback-heavy draft class, free agency or via trade. In San Francisco’s camp, now it’s about building around that centerpiece instead of hoping to find it.
“It didn’t happen in the draft process last year, but some fortuitous things kind of broke our way during the season and I really commend Kyle for his patience once we got Jimmy and allowing him to take time and learn the system as best he could,” Lynch said. “Everybody was saying, ‘Play him. You traded for him. Let’s play him.’ He made sure that he was at a spot where we were setting him up for success and then he went in and, as we like to say, he balled out.
“He played really well and hemade our team better. Then it became our focus to get him locked up. It was a deal that worked out for everyone. We’re very appreciative to Jimmy, (agent) Don Yee and his team that we were able to do it so swiftly. That’s a huge bonus for us, that we have him locked in going into free agency. It makes it a place where a lot of people want to be and we’re excited about that.”
When asked whether he’ll use Garoppolo to attract free agents to San Francisco, Lynch smiled and asked, “Would you?”
Lynch of fered his thoughts as to why he thinks Garoppolo can achieve long-term success rather than being a one-hit wonder.
“The physical traits, he can really quickly process and get rid of the football in a fashion that I would say is elite,” Lynch said.