Washington Football Team will place LB Reuben Foster on injured reserve

Reuben Foster worked hard to be able to participate in training camp in 2020, but at the end of it all, he’ll still have to wait before hitting the field again.

Today marks the end of the 2020 NFL offseason, as well as the start of new chapters for many players who will find themselves either released, traded, or stashed for the season on injured reserve or the practice squad. The Washington Football Team will have to cut down their roster to 53 players before 4:00 P.M., and already, the moves are starting to trickle in.

Among the early moves was a key update on linebacker Reuben Foster. According to reports from ESPN’s John Keim, Foster will be placed on injured reserve by the Washington Football Team.

Because Foster was placed on injured reserve today, and not after the cutdown to 53, he will be sidelined for the entire 2020 regular season, and he will not be eligible to return to action at any point. This means that Foster will now go almost three years, at the very least, without playing a down in the NFL.

Foster, 26, was originally signed by Washington midway through 2018, after the San Francisco 49ers released him due to assault allegations. Those allegations were eventually dropped, and Foster prepared to suit up for the burgundy and gold in 2019. But on the first day of organized team activities that year, Foster suffered a devastating knee injury, which ended his season.

Foster suffered nerve damage from that injury, and it took him a long time to regain feeling in his leg and work back to a place where he could potentially contribute. It was a pleasant surprise when Foster was deemed well enough to participate in training camp activities at the start of August, but he was primarily a contributor for the third-team defense, and he failed to stand out at a crowded position.

Foster’s tape at Alabama was elite, and some of his early moments with the 49ers enticed onlookers with his potential. But now, Foster is long removed from those days, and he’ll have to wait at least another year to prove he still belongs. The silver lining for Foster is that, if he wasn’t entirely one-hundred percent yet, he’ll have an extra year to get there, and go all-in on a return. With his contract expiring, however, that return might not be with Washington.