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2017 NFL Draft: The Top 32 Prospects and How the 49ers Are Linked to Each

By Peter Panacy

May 8, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the stage and podium before the start of the 2014 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
May 8, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the stage and podium before the start of the 2014 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 31, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Reuben Foster (10) during warm-ups before the 2016 CFP Semifinal against the Washington Huskies at the Georgia Dome. Alabama defeated Washington 24-7. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 31, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Reuben Foster (10) during warm-ups before the 2016 CFP Semifinal against the Washington Huskies at the Georgia Dome. Alabama defeated Washington 24-7. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 12: Linebacker Reuben Foster, Alabama

Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster might wind up being one of the best fits the 49ers could seek in this year’s NFL Draft.

San Francisco’s linebacker crop was particularly vulnerable last season, especially after season-ending injuries to NaVorro Bowman and Ray-Ray Armstrong.

Adding Foster would make sense, even if his NFL Scouting Combine blowup raised some red flags.

The 49ers are interested too, according to various reports.

Along with running back Leonard Fournette, Foster was one of two prospects the 49ers were “in love with,” according to both Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller and the MMQB’s Albert Breer.

Who knows if there’s validity to the Foster report, while overhyping to what many feel is a false report on Fournette.

Still, Foster would help take pressure off Bowman in 2017 and could line up anywhere within the linebacker group in the Niners’ 4-3 defense.