One of the most athletic linebackers to come out of Alabama during Nick Saban’s tenure, Reuben Foster has already earned a starting spot for the San Francisco 49ers after taking a surprising fall in April’s NFL Draft. Not only does he look like a solid starter, he already has the look of someone that will be hearing his name called at the end of the year for numerous awards. The peak of his preseason action came Sunday night, during a week three matchup with the Minnesota Vikings.
In just one half of play, Reuben Foster led his team in solo and total tackles with a combined 8 on the night. One of those a highlight-reel tackle for loss on an attempted swing pass to Dalvin Cook that erupted social media:
Reuben Foster!! the rookie out of #Alabama #NBC pic.twitter.com/WNCuEWzFrg
— InsideBamaRecruiting (@RTRnews) August 28, 2017
Foster continued show off the instincts that made him so good in Tuscaloosa throughout the rest of his night. On a short pass to former Ole Miss Rebel, Laquan Treadwell, Foster tracked the ball and laid the hammer down before Treadwell could get his head around:
There goes that man again. @ferrarifoster with another big hit. #SFvsMIN pic.twitter.com/Fkj9ZE8lLB
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) August 28, 2017
All throughout his half of playing time, Foster showed elite closing speed just as he did in the two plays above. He has already shown to be an above average pass-defending linebacker throughout the first couple of weeks, and the dominant tackling preformance tonight may have come in the finale of his preseason play.
Despite his falling in the draft, 49ers’ fans have high expectations for the former Crimson Tide stud. If his preseason has been anything to go on, they found themselves a game-changer late in the first round. Not just a game changer, either, but a serious Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate, and potentially a future All-Pro.
Jake Weaver is a lead writer for TD Alabama Magazine and Bama Hoops Hype. You can contact him via phone at 205-612-5060, or on Twitter @JWeaverFootball
