Redskins: Alabama alums helping Reuben Foster through recovery

The Redskins have cultivated a special kind of support system, intertwined into their roster.

They had some help, of course. From the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Washington Redskins have invested heavily in former college teammates, and in 2019, those connections might help a certain player keep his head up, as he recovers from an ACL tear.

When Reuben Foster went down with a severe non-contact knee injury on the first day of organized team activities, the lofty expectations surrounding the former first-round pick’s 2019 season crumbled into dust.

Once focused on the coming campaign, Foster now has to focus on his recovery, and it will be a long one. ACL recoveries typically last from nine months to a year, so the injury almost guarantees that Foster won’t suit up in the 2019 season. It’s a vast expanse of empty time; one that can significantly lower the morale of a player. But luckily for Foster, he has a support system to help him get through it.

Jonathan Allen, Shaun Dion Hamilton, Landon Collins, and Ryan Anderson, four players who joined Foster in his time on Alabama’s vaunted defense, all join Foster on the Redskins 2019 roster, and they’ll be present as Foster steps on the road back to football. In an article on AL.com by Mark Inabinett, fellow linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton had this to say about Foster, and how he’s helping his friend and teammate through the ordeal.

"He was like, ‘Yeah, you’ll be there for me, be able to help me out because you’ve been through two of these knee braces’. So that’s all I try to do, just be there for him because I’ve been through it. Just help him and keep his spirits up.I told him, ‘It’s going to be a battle.’ But the thing is a storm doesn’t last forever. I’m going to be with him every step of the way. I know how it is when one day it’s sorer than the other. One day you feel good; the next day it’s painful. It’s important you just have a level head."

Hamilton is a good voice for Foster to have in his corner, as are Ryan Anderson, Jonathan Allen, and Landon Collins. It’s a refreshing change for Foster, who saw off-the-field issues derail his stint in San Francisco. No one should mount a recovery alone, and luckily for Foster, he’ll have reasonable voices steering him along the right path, helping him to keep his head high.