Dan Quinn explains the Commanders' creative experiment with former first round pick coming off a bad year

Let's just say Emmanuel Forbes is ready to forget his rookie year with the Washington Commanders.

It was a rough season that saw the former first-rounder get benched at one point and then he suffered an injury that cost him two games. Still, at season's end, he started the final two games and played 99% of defensive snaps in each contest. But, it didn't go well as he gave up a combined 11 receptions for 143 yards and two touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. 

2024 represents a fresh start, however, especially considering there's a whole new coaching staff in town. And, new head coach Dan Quinn and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. reportedly watched Forbes "closely" until he was taken at No. 16 overall in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Meaning, it really is a new start for the former Bulldog.

“I’ve never been benched before. But it was like a learning experience," Forbes said back in 2023. "Luckily, I talked to my guy, [Eagles cornerback] Darius Slay, and he’s been benched before and he said to just keep my head up and keep coming to work... 

"I would say when I got benched, it shook a little bit because I’d never been benched before, and I was in my head a lot, so I had to get past that.”

In fact, Quinn and co. have Forbes returning punts through the first couple of weeks of OTAs and Quinn explained why on Wednesday.

"Right off the bat, we know there's more return opportunities,"  Quinn told reporters. "Emmanuel's got ridiculous return skill as a defensive player, so we wanted to add that part of it. Although he didn't do it at Mississippi State, that doesn't mean he doesn't have the traits necessary. We've got a big, deep crew, now, that we're working both in punt return and kick return. So, just like in everything, we're trying to find out what unique things a player has and how to feature them.
"That not only will be during this time of year... it takes time through training camp... It does take a little bit of exploring, but that's our job as coaches - to find any unique traits the players have... and trying to find the things that people can do instead of the things they can't do."