Washington Commanders rookie cornerback Emmanuel Forbes had a day to forget on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Commanders had Forbes matched up one-on-one with Eagles star wide receiver A.J. Brown for most of the game.
The results weren’t pretty. According to Pro Football Focus, Forbes was targeted 13 times and allowed nine receptions. He did have some moments, as on one series, he broke up back-to-back throws to Brown, but that was about it. Both of Brown’s touchdowns came against Forbes.
After the game, Forbes acknowledged it was a tough day at the office. The Commanders hope this was Forbes’ “Welcome to the NFL moment,” and he uses it as motivation moving forward.
One encouraging aspect of Sunday’s game was that Forbes kept battling. But Brown, one of the NFL’s best, kept making him pay. Now, much like quarterback Sam Howell last week, is how Forbes bounces back from such a difficult performance.
Head coach Ron Rivera is not concerned about Forbes.
“For the most part, with young guys, it’s about learning, growing, developing, continuing to get reps every opportunity you can, and play him as much as you can until they learn,” Rivera said.
“They’re going to make mistakes, but they’re going to grow. You know, a week ago, Sam had some issues, and I thought he did a nice job coming out this week, and I expect Emmanuel to learn from what just happened.”
Forbes has had some positive moments through four games but has struggled, too. Of course, going against two of the NFL’s best — Stefon Diggs and Brown — will cause you to struggle.
Did Rivera speak to Forbes after the game?
“I’ve already talked with Emmanuel,” Rivera said. “I talked to him right after the game, and I wanted to make sure he was okay. His head was in a good spot. But what’ll happen is his position coaches, and Jack [Del Rio] will get together with him. They’ll go through some things; they’ll talk about the positives; they’ll talk about the negatives, get an opportunity for him to look at things and see the things that he needs to work on and correct. I mean, it’s just a process of learning and growth. I mean, he is a young player, he’s a rookie that we’ve put a lot on, we think he’s capable.”
Rivera is right. It’s easy to forget this is Forbes’ fourth career game. He will get beaten again; it’s the nature of the position. How Forbes comes back from these types of performances will define him.