Reuben Foster; can he come back?

[Cooleyfan1993]

So, some moron on twitter is claiming that “the media doesn’t report nearly as much when the charges are dropped. A lot of us had no idea foster had been cleared”.

 

uhhhh, except for the headlines on ESPN, NYTimes, NFL.com, Sports Illustrated......... 

[Riggo#44]

11 minutes ago, Number 44 said:

Man, I hope I'm not setting myself up for disappointment, but our defense really is starting to get me excited for the season.

I've been geeking up about this season, which probably means we're going to fall apart. But for the first time in God knows how long, we have a really young, talented roster. We might not be overly successful, but it'll be fun.

[HTTRDynasty]

I'm guessing he'll play WILL.  Hopefully, SDH and KPL still get opportunities to shine.  These are the three LBs I'm most excited about, and they all play the same position, which sucks.  Though I do think SDH could be successful at MIKE and KPL could be successful at SAM.  I doubt they'll get the chance to prove it though due their the lack of size.

 

 

[HTTRDynasty]

 

[Malapropismic Depository]

I would love to see him as a blitzing LB.

He's a missile when he tackles RB's, with great instincts.

So imagine how much easier he'll take down an immobile QB, especially with our line getting double teamed

[COWBOY-KILLA-]

He could be lethal on this defense. Hope he continues to do what he needs to do to be able to develop for this Team.

[justice98]

Unfortunately, we won't be able to see Foster in preseason to see whether he's back to his previous level or whether he's lost a step.  Here's hoping they get a good read on things in practice.

[London Kev]

This is great news. With Foster stuffing the RB and Young flattening the QB, let's hope that someone can step up in the secondary. This defense is shaping up to be special.

[Est.1974]

Great. Can’t wait to see what we’ve got in Foster.

[FootballZombie]

Alex Smith is not the likeliest player on our squad to win comeback player of the year. Playing behind this D-line Foster has a real shot to secure some hardware.

 

I’m excited to finally see what the guy can do. Its been a long wait. It also further continues the tendency of heavy contributors from Alabama. Wow, that trend just wont die. (Zombie pun)

[Always A Commander Never A Captain]

4 hours ago, Riggo#44 said:

I've been geeking up about this season, which probably means we're going to fall apart. But for the first time in God knows how long, we have a really young, talented roster. We might not be overly successful, but it'll be fun.

 

I think we'll be better than expected.  I think come December we'll be in the playoff hunt and following who wins and loses.  I don't think we make it, but it I think we'll be somewhat relevant in December.

 

That plus a young roster.  It's exciting for sure.  Expectations aren't high, it's all about growth.

[Riggo#44]

56 minutes ago, Alcoholic Zebra said:

 

I think we'll be better than expected.  I think come December we'll be in the playoff hunt and following who wins and loses.  I don't think we make it, but it I think we'll be somewhat relevant in December.

 

That plus a young roster.  It's exciting for sure.  Expectations aren't high, it's all about growth.

 

If thats the case, Rivera should be unanimous CoY.

[bakedtater1]

20 minutes ago, Riggo#44 said:

 

If thats the case, Rivera should be unanimous CoY.

When the team wins the superbowl in 2021 he will.

Maybe a few hiccups..start out 3-3..3-5..catch fire and watch out for this defense..fingers crossed Reuben contributes and chase is 3/4 of what hyped and ..well watch out 

[kingdaddy]

56 minutes ago, bakedtater1 said:

When the team wins the superbowl in 2021 he will.

Maybe a few hiccups..start out 3-3..3-5..catch fire and watch out for this defense..fingers crossed Reuben contributes and chase is 3/4 of what hyped and ..well watch out 

If I'm the Eagles in week one I have to wonder/be worried about how to scheme for our defense with the new coaching staff and the aggressive young players we have that won't have played a down together as a unit. Who do you double? Who do you put one on one with Sweat/Kerrigan and the others on that defensive line? I expect Thomas Davis and JDR to have this unit playing like their hair's on fire and that should spell trouble for teams that have no film on us early in the season. I really hope Reuben can come back and be the player he's always supposed to have been.....

[bakedtater1]

1 minute ago, kingdaddy said:

If I'm the Eagles in week one I have to wonder/be worried about how to scheme for our defense with the new coaching staff and the aggressive young players we have that won't have played a down together as a unit. Who do you double? Who do you put one on one with Sweat/Kerrigan and the others on that defensive line? I expect Thomas Davis and JDR to have this unit playing like their hair's on fire and that should spell trouble for teams that have no film on us early in the season. I really hope Reuben can come back and be the player he's always supposed to have been.....

Good stuff here..totally agree..why do I keep forgetting about Kerrigan?...I could see the pheagles smoking us with the d new and all..i could see it going the other way as well...I wanna say 3-3 than catch fire but also could be 1-4..

[mistertim]

6 hours ago, HTTRDynasty said:

I'm guessing he'll play WILL.  Hopefully, SDH and KPL still get opportunities to shine.  These are the three LBs I'm most excited about, and they all play the same position, which sucks.  Though I do think SDH could be successful at MIKE and KPL could be successful at SAM.  I doubt they'll get the chance to prove it though due their the lack of size.

 

 

 

I agree and think he's a natural WILL because of his athleticism, instincts, and play making ability. Though I could definitely see him as an effective MIKE as well because of his range.

 

As far as SDH I could see him as a good MIKE or WILL, though IIRC he was the "brains" of the operation at Bama and played MIKE while calling out the plays, etc and Foster was the "brawn" who blew everyone up. Would be cool to see that again here.

 

I have sort of a hard time seeing KPL as a SAM because of his size. 6'0 230 is pretty small for a SAM. Usually that's a guy you want to be bigger so he can take on blocks, stack and shed. etc. i think he could be an effective rotational guy at WILL though. 

[HTTRDynasty]

29 minutes ago, mistertim said:

I have sort of a hard time seeing KPL as a SAM because of his size. 6'0 230 is pretty small for a SAM. Usually that's a guy you want to be bigger so he can take on blocks, stack and shed. etc. i think he could be an effective rotational guy at WILL though. 

 

Yeah, the run game is where he would struggle, which is why I don't love the idea unless JDR could find a way to hide him.  But I salivate at the thought of having him blitz and defend TEs, which the SAM is often asked to do.  I recently watched a few Bears games from last season on Game Pass, focusing on him and Lucas.  Here were my quick notes on KPL:

 

- The dude is noticeably small for a LB

- He’s an animal though. Very smart in coverage. Though I did see passes completed against him, I never saw him make a mistake in coverage. 

- Honestly, where he really shines is as a pass-rusher. He’s legitimately a better pass rusher than Sweat at this point IMO. His bend is scary for an ILB. I think it’s probably a skill he developed on special teams as the player who comes off the edge looking to block punts (I saw him get close on a few). It’s not just bend though. I saw him push Zack Martin back a couple feet with a one-hand stab. I had to rewind it a few times to believe what I was seeing. He might be our SLB. 

- Or maybe not because he’s not very good against the run. He tries hard but his size is a liability. 
- But we should definitely have him blitz as often as possible.

 

At the very least, he should be our 5th rusher in obvious pass situations when we decide to bring the blitz.

[Burgundy Yoda]

1 hour ago, kingdaddy said:

If I'm the Eagles in week one I have to wonder/be worried about how to scheme for our defense with the new coaching staff and the aggressive young players we have that won't have played a down together as a unit. Who do you double? Who do you put one on one with Sweat/Kerrigan and the others on that defensive line? I expect Thomas Davis and JDR to have this unit playing like their hair's on fire and that should spell trouble for teams that have no film on us early in the season. I really hope Reuben can come back and be the player he's always supposed to have been.....

The Eagles would have to double the players they know are really good against the pass rush. Ioannidis is for sure getting doubled when he steps in and plays, after that the Eagles will probably take their chances. Sweat came on strong at the end of the year, but he wasn't deserving of a double team, hopefully he's improved a lot in the pass rushing department. If Young comes in and starts lighting them up, the Eagles are going to immediately start having issues because then focus will shift to Young and everyone else should feast. I'm really excited about this D-Line, I haven't been this excited about a position group on the team... Ever honestly. 

[mistertim]

18 minutes ago, HTTRDynasty said:

 

Yeah, the run game is where he would struggle, which is why I don't love the idea unless JDR could find a way to hide him.  But I salivate at the thought of having him blitz and defend TEs, which the SAM is often asked to do.  I recently watched a few Bears games from last season on Game Pass, focusing on him and Lucas.  Here were my quick notes on KPL:

 

- The dude is noticeably small for a LB

- He’s an animal though. Very smart in coverage. Though I did see passes completed against him, I never saw him make a mistake in coverage. 

- Honestly, where he really shines is as a pass-rusher. He’s legitimately a better pass rusher than Sweat at this point IMO. His bend is scary for an ILB. I think it’s probably a skill he developed on special teams as the player who comes off the edge looking to block punts (I saw him get close on a few). It’s not just bend though. I saw him push Zack Martin back a couple feet with a one-hand stab. I had to rewind it a few times to believe what I was seeing. He might be our SLB. 

- Or maybe not because he’s not very good against the run. He tries hard but his size is a liability. 
- But we should definitely have him blitz as often as possible.

 

At the very least, he should be our 5th rusher in obvious pass situations when we decide to bring the blitz.

 

I haven't really watched a bunch of KPL so I didn't know he was a good pass rusher. I know I shouldn't go by stats alone but I'm curious why he's only had 1 sack in his career if that's the case. I have heard (and seen from what small amount I've watched) that he's very good in coverage. I could maybe see a sub combo of KPL and Ryan Anderson at SAM; I think that could be pretty effective. 

[HTTRDynasty]

3 minutes ago, mistertim said:

 

I haven't really watched a bunch of KPL so I didn't know he was a good pass rusher. I know I shouldn't go by stats alone but I'm curious why he's only had 1 sack in his career if that's the case. I have heard (and seen from what small amount I've watched) that he's very good in coverage. I could maybe see a sub combo of KPL and Ryan Anderson at SAM; I think that could be pretty effective. 

 

I'm honestly not sure, other than the fact that he's only started 4 games in his career, so he hasn't been given much of a chance to prove it.  But just from the 2019 Bears games I watched, he definitely should be given more of an opportunity going forward.

 

Also, I just checked PFF and they had him as the #1 rated pass rusher in the league at ILB.  I'm not surprised.

 

 

 

10 minutes ago, mistertim said:

 I could maybe see a sub combo of KPL and Ryan Anderson at SAM; I think that could be pretty effective. 

 

Yeah, that could work.

[Riggo'sRangers]

I am elated to have Ruben back, but my expectations are a bit tempered. I feel, hope, he will be a part of the rotation in 2020.  I hope he exceeds my expectations. However, after a year in the D, 2021 could be his breakout year. We have to remember that not so long ago he was just regaining feeling in his foot. It was a horrendous injury and pleasantly surprised he is not on the PUP.  Another year of healing & learning will do wonders for him. Not worried about him being a free agent because if he proves his worth, we have the cap room for him, and then some. 

[dyst]

I don’t really expect much from him. In his 3 years in the league, he has been injured 2 of those years. His stats don’t scream much of anything to me even when he played and he has some questionable off the field situations he has gotten himself into. 
 

He is exciting for sure. His speed and force with which he hits could pump any crowd up. However so far he has been more flash than substance.

 

Hoping for the best, but expect very little right now.
 

[Anselmheifer]

3 minutes ago, dyst said:

I don’t really expect much from him. In his 3 years in the league, he has been injured 2 of those years. His stats don’t scream much of anything to me even when he played and he has some questionable off the field situations he has gotten himself into. 
 

He is exciting for sure. His speed and force with which he hits could pump any crowd up. However so far he has been more flash than substance.

 

Hoping for the best, but expect very little right now.
 

 

In fairness to him, he's not just those things. He was one of the top 10 college defenders PFF ever graded and PFF had him grading out as an All Pro his rookie year, before he got hurt. But, he has been hurt a lot.

[dyst]

1 minute ago, Anselmheifer said:

 

In fairness to him, he's not just those things. He was one of the top 10 college defenders PFF ever graded and PFF had him grading out as an All Pro his rookie year, before he got hurt. But, he has been hurt a lot.

True, but some guys just don’t translate to the NFL as expected. Not saying he can’t but so far he has been a shell of what he was in college. We’ve seen it with our own guys over the years especially with the injury bug.

[mistertim]

12 minutes ago, dyst said:

True, but some guys just don’t translate to the NFL as expected. Not saying he can’t but so far he has been a shell of what he was in college. We’ve seen it with our own guys over the years especially with the injury bug.

 

His rookie year he seemed to translate really well. He was borderline All=Pro before injury. 

 

That doesn't mean he'll necessarily be the same guy as he was pre-injury. But I don't think it's necessarily accurate to say his game didn't carry over from college to the NFL.