The only thing that looms from a drama-filled offseason for second-year linebacker Reuben Foster is a two-game suspension to start the season. He looks to learn from his offseason troubles and steer clear of problems going forward. After all, Foster knows his NFL career could have easily been over after just one season.
"It made me appreciate football a lot better," Foster said last month. "It was crazy knowing that football can be gone. But just being back on this field with my brothers and these coaches is a blessing."
Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh sat down this week for an interview on KNBR, which aired on Tuesday morning. He discussed his young linebacker on and off the field and said the 49ers are working with him in both areas.
Saleh first addressed the off-the-field aspect.
"Anyone who actually knows Reuben off the field will find a young man who's actually a great human being," Saleh said on the Murph & Mac show. "He really is. Now, the decisions and all that, those are getting better in that regard. He is being coached up. John (Lynch) and Kyle (Shanahan) and all them, they've surrounded him with the right people."
Then Saleh discussed Foster's on-the-field presence and how the 49ers are preparing for the regular season knowing the linebacker will be unavailable for the first two weeks.
"As far as the kid on the football field, he's another one that just wants to work," Saleh continued. "He wants to be here. He wants to be around his teammates, and he wants to work. For us as a coaching staff, it's very easy to coach Reuben. He wants to get better every day.
"With regards to the suspension, we're treating him as if he's going to be there Week 1 and as we get closer to that Week 1, we'll start making the necessary adjustments to get the guys ready who are going to play Weeks 1 and 2."
Foster had an impressive rookie campaign despite only playing in 10 games. He accumulated 72 combined tackles and a pass defensed last season. There are, however, still aspects of Foster's game that can see improvement.
"His hand usage in the box and close quarters needs to get better," Saleh said. "Believe it or not, his tackling can get a lot better in close quarters by coming in with more of a base and trying to preserve of his body parts.
"The big part for Reuben and all these guys who are entering their second year is to really start to hone in on the offensive side of the ball and understanding what offenses are trying to do to him. They should know the scheme already. They should be able to coach me the scheme. They should be familiar and comfortable with the fundamentals even though every day you go out there, you're getting better at it.
"So now, it's understanding offense, understanding what they're trying to do, understanding receiver splits, and run game, and blocking schemes, and all those different things. That's the next step for Reuben so he can go even faster than he already is."
You can listen to the entire interview with Saleh below.