With shoulder fully healthy, 49ers LB Reuben Foster cleared for camp

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- After plenty of outside consternation about the status of his surgically repaired right shoulder, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster has been completely cleared for his first NFL training camp.

"Guess what? It's training camp and the kid just got cleared yesterday and I'm so excited," Foster said on the team's Twitter account. "We're going to have an exciting season, an exciting training camp and I can't wait."

Moments before video of Foster's proclamation, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch confirmed that Foster had indeed been cleared for full participation when the team has its first practice Friday afternoon.

That is certainly welcome news to Niners fans after the status of Foster's shoulder had been endlessly debated before and after the NFL draft. The rotator cuff injury, suffered in Alabama's national semifinal win against Washington, played a primary role in Foster's slide to the No. 31 spot in the first round.

The 49ers traded up from the top of the second round with the Seattle Seahawks in order to acquire Foster but insisted that they had done the necessary research on the shoulder and he would be ready to go for training camp.

The team's doctors and trainers limited Foster to noncontact drills during the offseason program while eyeing training camp as a potential full go. As it turned out, that's exactly what happened as Foster officially got the green light on Wednesday.

"I would say that we pride ourselves in doing all our due diligence not afterwards but before we make decisions," Lynch said. "And we had done exhaustive research on Reuben Foster in a lot of different areas, medically was one area. We feel great about our doctors, our medical program here. ... He's fully cleared and no limitations; we're excited about that."

Not only will Foster not have any restrictions when camp opens, but he will also be allowed to continue to do everything when the team puts the pads on after a league-mandated two-practice waiting period.

Foster's availability clears the path for him to engage in what figures to be one of the Niners' most hotly contested position battles against Malcolm Smith for a starting job at weakside linebacker.

While Foster will have to play catch-up after Smith took all of the reps with the first-team defense in the spring, he managed to impress Shanahan and Lynch with his ability to stay plugged in mentally even when he wasn't at full speed.

"What was real impressive with Reuben, which you don't always see with guys coming right out of college, is to be able to sit in these long meetings and just watch stuff on a board and know you're not going to go out and practice that day," Shanahan said. "Lots of guys, especially coming straight out of college, have a hard time staying awake. They can't really focus as long, especially when they know they're not playing that day.

"Reuben was very good the opposite way. He was into it; he surprised me with his knowledge of the defense. I think he's in as good of a spot as you can be without stepping on the field."

With Foster in the fold, Shanahan indicated that the 49ers are expected to begin camp without any players on the physically unable to perform list.

For any fellow 49ers coming off injury, matching Foster's enthusiasm is a tall order.

"He's champing at the bit," Lynch said. "We told you about how we almost had to have a leash on him to keep him out of drills and all that. There's so much to like about him. I think we've only grown to appreciate that more since he's been in the building. He's got an excitement that's infectious."