AP

The 49ers chose linebacker Reuben Foster with the 31st overall pick in the draft and later said that they were so high on Foster they would have drafted him with the third overall pick if Solomon Thomas had been off the board. So why did so many other teams pass on Foster if the 49ers were so high on him?

A big reason is that Foster has a history of shoulder injuries. Foster had shoulder surgery three months ago, and one source told Adam Schefter of ESPN “The surgery didn’t take.” For some teams, that was apparently enough to take him off their draft boards.

But not every team: The 49ers’ medical staff thinks Foster’s shoulder will be just fine. And we know the 49ers weren’t the only team to give Foster’s shoulder a passing grade because the Saints were about to draft Foster with the 32nd overall pick before the 49ers took him 31st. New Orleans must have been comfortable with Foster’s shoulder.

So either some teams’ medical staffs were too lax with giving Foster’s shoulder a clean bill of health, or other teams’ medical staffs were overly cautious. We won’t know which side was right until we see whether Foster’s shoulder affects him as a 49er.