The Los Angeles Rams added a new player Monday, and it was a player they definitely weren’t expecting to get: former first-round pick Emmanuel Forbes.
After the Washington Commanders cut Forbes over the weekend, he hit waivers, which meant any team could claim him. The NFL’s waiver order is determined by a team’s current record: The team with the worst record picks first and so on. At 6-6, the Rams were outside the top 15 in the waiver order, so head coach Sean McVay didn’t think his team had any chance to land Forbes, so he was pretty shocked Monday when he found out the Rams were able to get the cornerback.
“I didn’t actually think we’d get him because of where we’re at in the claim order, so we were pleased that we were able to get him,” McVay said, via Rams Wire. “We’ll add him to the mix, we’ll get to know him and we’ll see where he fits. But that was kind of a simple thing that came to fruition.”
Forbes entered the NFL in 2023 when Washington made him the 16th overall pick in the draft. During his two seasons with the team, he started a total of seven games, but only got one start this season. Forbes was on the field as a starter in Washington’s opener against Tampa Bay, but he got benched in that game.
McVay said the Rams were eyeing him when he was coming out of college, which is why they made a claim for him after he was waived.
“[He’s a] player that we liked as part of the evaluation process coming out a couple of years ago out of Mississippi State,” McVay said. “He had a lot of ball production and had some good tape out there, even when we played them last year. He showed versatility, showed competitive toughness on the edge, and good ball skills.
One thing that could help Forbes get quickly acclimated in Los Angeles is the fact that he’ll be playing with former Commanders teammate Kamren Curl in the Rams’ secondary.
“Kam Curl was excited to be able to reunite with him,” McVay said. “We’ll get him in here and get him acclimated to the building, but he was a guy that we liked and had a familiarity with just based on the evaluation coming out of Mississippi State, and then I thought there was some good tape that he’s put out there when we’ve gone against him, particularly later in the year last year.”
It’s not often that a former first-round pick comes available at this time of the year, so the Rams decided to pounce on Forbes. They’ll be hoping he can help them in the secondary for the stretch run. Forbes had two interceptions in 20 career games with the Commanders.