The Washington Commanders drafted defensive back Emmanuel Forbes Jr. in the first round in large part because they wanted to create more takeaways on defense.
In a win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, the team generated three, but Forbes was nowhere near the action — he didn’t play a single snap.
Forbes, a cornerback out of Mississippi State, had struggled the past two weeks, and the coaching staff decided to give him a week off to mentally reset.
Commanders coach Ron Rivera wouldn’t commit to playing Forbes going forward, declaring it a week-to-week matter. During a Zoom call Monday, he said he still believes in Forbes, but getting him right “might take a little bit more time.”
Forbes had been eased into play in his rookie season, playing about two-thirds of the snaps in Weeks 1 and 2, then 41% of the game on defense in Week 3.
But against the Eagles in Week 4, he was given the opportunity to shine, playing virtually the entire game against star receiver A.J. Brown. But Brown was the big winner in that matchup, and when Forbes struggled again against the Bears, the next week, he was benched, leading to his reset week.
It’s only the latest example of Washington failing to get value out of its draft selections.
Second-round pick Quan Martin hadn’t played on defense this season until Sunday, and last year’s first-round pick, receiver Jahan Dotson, struggled in the win against the Falcons.
Two years ago, the pick was linebacker Jamin Davis, who was moved from middle to outside linebacker, a less valuable position, after early struggles.
Rivera said Forbes’ time off will be an opportunity to reset.
“He and I had a conversation last week as to what was going on,” Rivera said. “I just explained to him that we feel right now that time down would help you get a chance to kind of take a step back and watch it, and see how things are done — see a little different perspective.
“Again, he’s been really good so far, and I expect him to continue. He’s a young pro who’s got a lot to learn, a lot of growth to have … We really think this young man’s got a great skill set, and can be a good football player, it’s just — this might take a little bit more time.”
Please read our comment policy before commenting.