Rams Add Rival’s $15 Million Former 1st-Round Pick to Roster

Getty Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay looks on against the Chicago Bears.

The Los Angeles Rams remained active in search of ways to upgrade the roster for the final stretch of the regular season. They landed a rather intriguing flier on the waiver wire from an NFC rival, claiming cornerback Emmanuel Forbes off waivers from the Washington Commanders, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter and others.

The Commanders cut Forbes, the No. 16 overall pick of the 2023 draft, on November 30.

Their decision represents a turning of the page, as general manager Adam Peters & Co. clean out players drafted by the previous regime. Forbes was the final Commanders’ first-round pick selected between 2019 and 2023 on the roster.

“A fresh start,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said in his post on X reporting the news of the Rams’ move.

It is a needed reset for Forbes. He posted the Bible verse Job 18:7-17, which describes the fate of the wicked, following his release. Forbes is in Year 2 of a four-year, $15.4 million rookie scale contract, leaving the Rams on the hook for a prorated portion.

Rams Land Former Commanders Draft Bust Emmanuel Forbes Off Waivers

Forbes has 7 total tackles and 1 interception this season, starting one of the six games he has played in.

He started six games as a rookie, finishing the campaign with 38 combined stops, 11 deflections, and 1 pick. But opposing quarterbacks have completed 6-of-8 passes (75%) in his direction this season, per Pro Football Reference.

He allowed 60.7% completion as a rookie.

Pro Football Focus ranked him the 32nd in defensive grade among second-year cornerbacks out of 34 qualifiers. PFF also ranked him 31st in coverage.

“Forbes is long, can run and has a talent for taking the ball away, which means he has a chance to become a coveted cornerback,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlien wrote pre-draft in 2023. “He pounces on quick-game throws and has the ball skills to take the ball away.

He notably got his first career interception against the Broncos.

“He’s highly capable in all forms of zone coverage and operates out of press-man, but is inconsistent matching the release and staying in phase with routes through sharp cuts,” Zierlien wrote. “Forbes could become an early starter with quality ball production, but teams might need to expect some up-and-down performances.”

Zierlien noted Forbes’ slender frame and lack of playing strength as potential issues then.

Forbes’ size has proven problematic on more than one occasion. But he is young enough to improve, and the Rams did not surrender draft capital to land him.