San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch spoke to reporters in the John McVay Draft Room on Monday. One of the topics that came up was the status of linebacker Reuben Foster, which he addressed.
"It's an ongoing legal process and we're going to respect that," Lynch said via Joe Fann of 49ers.com.
While Lynch would not go in-depth on Foster's situation, he did make a bold statement about the potential future of the star linebacker.
"The gravity of these charges has not been lost on us," Lynch continued. "We take it extremely seriously. We do feel like patience is the right approach right now. We're going to learn things through this legal process.
"But I do want to be abundantly clear that if these charges are proven true, if Reuben did indeed hit this young lady, he won't be a part of our organization going forward. That's the standard we want on our team. That's the standard we're going to operate under."
GM John Lynch says if it's proven Reuben Foster hit the alleged victim he will not be on the #49ers. pic.twitter.com/6HcsaB4GjE
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) April 23, 2018
Video courtesy of Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area.
Lynch also states that the 49ers, who were surprised by the severity of the charges filed against Foster, want to be patient with the legal process since all of the information isn't there yet.
With the draft just three days away, the 49ers are approaching the selection process as if Foster will not be on the team.
Following the incident on February 11 involving his live-in girlfriend, Foster faces charges of domestic violence with an allegation that he inflicted great bodily injury, forcefully attempting to prevent a victim from reporting a crime, and possession of an assault weapon.
