Washington Commanders rookie cornerback Emmanuel Forbes continues to turn heads. Forbes, the No. 16 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, arrived at the rookie minicamp last month and immediately had coaches telling the media that Forbes was “really f—–g good.”
Forbes continued impressing his new team in OTAs, matching up with Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson and winning some of those battles. Dotson said this week, after seeing Forbes in practice and competing against him, he says the hype is real.
Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio couldn’t contain his excitement when discussing the rookie from Mississippi State.
On the second day of minicamp this week, head coach Ron Rivera had his turn to discuss Forbes, and he believes the Commanders got what they were “hoping for” after selecting Forbes.
“Well, I think the biggest thing in terms of just watching him move around more so than anything else, it’s what we were hoping for,” Rivera said. “I mean, we’re looking for a guy that can impact the ball when it’s being thrown, when it’s in the air, and that’s who he was in college, and that’s what he’s showing us so far. So it’s been pretty exciting. We’re feeling really good about it so far.”
The main knock on Forbes is his weight. He weighed in at 166 pounds at the NFL combine. Former Washington general manager Scot McLoughan is a huge Forbes fan and said his weight was the only thing that kept him from giving him a top-10 grade.
Rivera acknowledged the physical nature of the game when discussing Forbes.
“Obviously, there is the physical nature of the game that we’ll have to watch once we get the pads on, but as of right now, everything else he’s done, he’s done exactly what we saw, Rivera said. “He is a ball hawk. He does time it out very well, does put himself in position.”
Going up against McLaurin, Dotson and Curtis Samuel each day can only help Forbes prepare for his rookie season.
“He’s working against some of the best route runners right now in the league, and that’s kind of neat to watch this young man grow already,” Rivera noted. “So it’s been a very good offseason with him so far.”
If nothing else, Forbes has proven he’s ready to contribute in Week 1 for the Commanders.
