John Lynch Says He's Approaching Draft as If Reuben Foster Won't Be with 49ers

While linebacker Reuben Foster remains on the San Francisco 49ers roster despite being charged with three felonies following allegations of domestic violence, his job is far from secure. 

General manager John Lynch was asked Monday if the team is preparing for Foster to not be on the team going forward and he responded, "Yeah, you have to," per Chris Biderman of the Niners Wire.

He also clarified his position regarding Foster's legal status, via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area:

"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 part of our organization going forward," Lynch explained.

Foster is accused of physically dragging his girlfriend during an argument in February, but the 49ers are willing to let the legal process play out.

"We've been a little quiet and that’s for a reason," Lynch told reporters in March, via Chelsea Howard of Sporting News. "There are certain places that I can’t and won’t go, because we’re dealing with an ongoing legal matter."

He also explained that the linebacker wasn't getting any preferential treatment despite the fact Tramaine Brock was immediately released after his domestic violence arrest last offseason.

Foster was a first-round pick in the 2017 draft and ranked second on the team with 72 tackles despite only playing 10 games as a rookie. However, it appears the 49ers are planning to move on without him if necessary.

San Francisco currently owns the No. 9 overall pick in the draft Thursday and could potentially use the first-round pick to replace Foster with Georgia's Roquan Smith or Virginia Tech's Tremaine Edmunds.