The Washington Commanders took Mississippi State cornerback Emmanuel Forbes with the 16th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Adam Epstein broke down the pick with Grant Paulsen, Chris Russell and more guests on the Fan Friday (April 29) afternoon.
"I like the position more than I like the pick," Epstein said. "[...] [He] seems like he's an ultimate weapon of a playmaker at cornerback, because he had six pick-sixes in college, interceptions galore, even blocked a field goal. So he's a smaller guy, but super quick and he knows how to make a play on the ball in the air.
"I think that's what's really important, is that this is a Washington team that didn't have any corners that could make a play on the ball in the air. [...] What I love about Emmanuel Forbes [is that] he's being compared to Sauce Gardner of the Jets, [...] compared him to the legend that was a smaller guy, that wore the Commanders jersey for a long time in Darrell Green -- one of my favorite corners ever to wear a Commanders jersey. [...] I think he's gonna have a long-standing career here with Washington."
Some projected the Commanders to draft Joey Porter Jr., who was eventually taken in the second round by the Steelers. It remains to be seen how Forbes will slot into Washington's defensive plan.
"We asked Ron that last night [and] they were noncommittal of course, go figure," 106.7 the Fan's Chris Russell added. "Forbes [has] the frame that would allow you to play him inside the slot. He's got the speed, he's got the physicality, he's got the toughness to overmatch smaller receivers. [...] The way I look at it is we might see more Forbes in the slot this year than outside, even though most of his experience is outside."
Grant & Danny co-host Grant Paulsen joined later on in the show and gave his take as well.
"I liked the pick," he said. "I thought cornerback was a huge need for Washington, and there were a couple of options when they were on the clock at [pick] 16. I would have preferred to move back -- I think that's always the case for me, frankly -- and certainly in this case, with Forbes, I think he was probably more of a mid-20s-type pick for me in the first round.
"[Forbes is] what they want. They want someone who can make plays on the football, who they like to say will finish plays, be [in the] right place right time, Johnny on the spot and come up with the football. I think there's a little bit of gamble in his game when I watch him -- he's gonna give up some big plays. [...] They want someone who can change and impact games, they want takeaways, they want a turnover machine and he's very, very fast."
Check out more from the show below.