Reuben Foster Hung Up on Saints to Take Call from 49ers During 2017 NFL Draft

Linebacker Reuben Foster had one of the strangest nights of any player taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft when the San Francisco 49ers grabbed him with the 31st overall pick. 

Speaking at his introductory press conference in San Francisco, Foster noted he was actually on the phone with the New Orleans Saints, who were prepared to take him at No. 32, before the 49ers traded back into the first round, via Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group:

Foster later clarified that he did not intentionally hang up on the Saints during the conversation, per Jeff Darlington of ESPN.

Prior to the draft, Foster was expected to be one of the first players taken. He was ranked as the No. 3 overall prospect by B/R's Matt Miller, who also had him going to the Saints with the 11th overall pick in his final mock draft. 

As the draft was going on and Foster continued to drop, questions about Foster's injured shoulder and character—he was sent home from the NFL combine due to an argument with a hospital worker, per ESPN's Adam Schefter—were the focus of the discussion for the former Alabama star. 

Foster also told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport last week he failed a drug test at the combine for having a diluted sample, which he attributed to drinking a lot of water to rehydrate due to an illness. 

The 49ers traded up three spots, giving the Seattle Seahawks their second-round pick and a fourth-round pick, to steal Foster out from under the Saints.