Ron Rivera called his shot with the Commanders’ No. 16 pick, saying as he drove to work (as seen in a video put out by the team) that the team would take Emmanuel Forbes if he was there.
One take, or maybe not, as John Keim wondered when he joined The Junkies Friday to discuss the pick?
“I wondered if they had to do a bunch of different videos, because I know there were six or seven guys they liked there that they would’ve taken them,” Keim laughed. “But I do know they liked him, and that’s legit. Some guys stood out more than others, and his ball-hawking ability is what they need, so it made sense he’d be a guy they’d want, and hoped would be there.”
Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, who went with the No. 17 pick, was still on the board, as only one corner had been taken when the Commanders came on the clock, but it was Forbes’ skill set that Keim says won out over the higher-rated overall prospect.
“I didn’t think Gonzalez was as high on their list as others might’ve thought, for a couple reasons,” Keim said. “With Forbes, it’s why he got the interceptions that translates; you get tipped passes or bad college quarterback throws, but others show terrific awareness with the ball in the air. He played receiver in high school, so he has that knack, but he also he leads the quarterback very well thru the receiver, which you’ll have to do in zone coverage, and he can take the ball away. That translates.”
Keim also noted that one of the issues with Gonzalez, perhaps, is that he played poorly against a strong Georgia offense last year, which is “one of the teams you should measure yourself against,” and that may have lingered in minds of scouts and brass, because “when you’re trying to separate guys, you will look at everything.”
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And what about Forbes’ diminutive stature?
“I think when you watch him…Fred Smoot was a small corner, and I think this guy’s a little thinner, but Smoot played above his weight,” Keim said. “It was the approach, and I think Forbes is a little similar with that where he’s certainly willing. He’s not going to just lay you out, but you have to be willing to try, because teams will try to run at you if you don’t. Plus, he’s very quick, and he can diagnose screens or smoke routes and comes up very hard on those, so he can position himself right to do his job. He’s a 4.35 guy with long arms, so that ability is there.”
Oh, and also, in a first round full of trades, the Commanders got no offers from teams wanting to come up to 16?
“It was that pick, and the question was who you were coming up for,” Keim said. “I know there could’ve been a desire to trade back, but with Forbes there, they were content to stay there – and once you got past that area, there were a lot of guys bunched in similar tiers, so unless you had a specific guy you liked, you were probably going to get someone you were happy with.”
Keim also weighed in on the positions the Commanders might look at in the second and third rounds - take a listen above!
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