Throughout the 2025 NFL season, SB Nation’s Doug Farrar will write about the game’s Secret Superstars — those players whose performances might slip under the radar for whatever reasons. In this installment, we focus on Los Angeles Rams cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr., who went from bust to ballhawk with his second NFL team, by way of some top-level coaching at all levels.
The Washington Commanders selected Mississippi State cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. with the 16th overall pick in the 2023 draft after a college career that saw Forbes set the FBS record for pick-sixes with six, and rank fourth all-time in school history with 14 interceptions. The idea was that Forbes would be the Commanders’ true eraser cornerback… a process that did not go as expected.
Forbes showed up at the scouting combine just under 6’1 and weighing 166 pounds; he became the only cornerback drafted since at least 2000 weighing under 170 pounds at the time. Not that this was Forbes’ primary obstacle in his time with the Commanders — that had more to do with injuries and problematic coverage mechanics. Forbes struggled to match receivers through their routes, especially at the catch point, and that’s why he finished his rookie season allowing 38 catches on 59 targets for 633 yards, five touchdowns, one interception, nine pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 121.6.
2024 might have been better but for the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb that Forbes had surgery on after Week 1. He returned in Week 4, and got his second NFL interception against the Carolina Panthers in Week 7, but the schism between what new head coach Dan Quinn wanted on defense, and what Forbes could provide, came to a head on November 30, 2024, when Forbes was outright released.
It’s obviously highly unusual for a first-round pick to be jettisoned by his team less than two full seasons after he hears his name called, and the Los Angeles Rams wanted to see what they could get out of Forbes. That’s why they signed him on December 2, 2024. Forbes played in the Rams’ regular-season finale against the Seattle Seahawks, allowing three catches on five targets for 38 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, no pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 83.8.
Then, Forbes bided his time, hoping that the 2025 season would provide different results.
At first, it was a rough go. From Weeks 1-5, he allowed 12 catches on 14 targets for 190 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, two pass breakups, and the highest possible opponent passer rating of 158.3. The “bust” label was circulating, but the Rams thought that Assistant Head Coach/Pass Game Coordinator Aubrey Pleasant could teach Forbes what he needed to know.
Recently and finally, it’s kicked in. In Weeks 6-8, Forbes allowed two catches on four targets for 12 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, no pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 56.3. Then, in the Rams’ last two games — extremely decisive wins over the New Orleans Saints and the San Francisco 49ers — Forbes had his breakout performances. In those two games, he gave up five catches on 12 targets for 76 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 23.6.
Now, the guy who couldn’t hang with NFL receivers at the catch point was establishing his physical dominance in those moments.
“It was big,” McVay said the day after the Saints game, when asked how important it was for Forbes to turn it around. “I think the thing that’s cool is I don’t think anybody would be surprised, because this is a culmination of the work and the consistent approach that he’s put in Monday through Saturdays. and then it translates in terms of showing up on Sunday where he’s given himself the best chance for a lot of that stuff to come to life. I give Aubrey a ton of credit for the relationship he’s developed, really not exclusive to Emmanuel, but with all of his players on our team in general.
“As the assistant head coach, he does such a great job for us. I’m really happy for Emmanuel and I’m looking forward to watching him build. I thought some of the plays that I was most excited about were watching him come up in run support, putting his face on people, crack replacing. He had some really good examples of some really good competitive coverage ops against some premier players in this league. It’s cool to be able to see him get his hands on the ball and be able to make that catch.”
As McVay intimated, Forbes is indeed facing up against the run as if he’d happened upon an unexpected tide of protein drinks… and you could win a lot of bets with that one.
“His physicality, I’d say, has impressed me the most,” defensive coordinator Chris Shula said of Forbes last week. “I’m happy it’s showing up now on game days. You’re seeing exactly what we’ve seen since OTAs and training camp and the type of competitor he is. He fits right in. He’s smart, he’s tough, and he’s just getting better and better.”
Maybe Aubrey Pleasant should be the Secret Superstar here; Shula was positively rhapsodic about his colleague, and how Pleasant makes cornerbacks into better cornerbacks.
“He’s the best in the league at developing corners,” Shula said. “We feel like we can give him almost anybody and he’d make them into a really good player. If you give him guys that have talent and that have the right makeup, we have full trust in him that he’s going to get the most out of him. We were joking around last week when [cornerback] Roger [McCreary] came and we were like, ‘Oh, we traded for him on Monday. You have plenty of time.’ He’s done it on Wednesday and Thursday and has gotten guys ready to play. He’s the best in the league as far as developing those guys and coaching them hard, coaching them tough, but loving them as people as well.”
As McVay said on November 5, Pleasant’s “secret sauce” is a genuine interest in his players as people.
“I think one of the things that’s special about Aubrey is he develops a real relationship with his players, and it’s not exclusive to the defensive back room. He’s the Assistant Head Coach, and has great relationships with the whole team. You can see the way the guys respond to him. I heard [Hall of Fame and former UCLA Basketball Head Coach] John Wooden say before, ‘People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.’ Aubrey epitomizes that. He gets to know these guys as human beings. I love sitting in the DB meeting rooms when there’s an element of, alright, hey, we’re going to get our work in. We’re going to understand what’s the goal in mind as far as what’s tactically concerned.
“He usually always takes time at the beginning of the meetings to be able to say, ‘Alright, let’s get to know each other as people.’ It might be a fun thing. It might be guys being able to open up and be vulnerable and he always starts with himself. He’s a great teacher. He’s a great coach, a great communicator, and he’s in it with them. I think the guys feel that.
“We talk all the time about when you really mean it, four of the most powerful words you can say are ‘I believe in you.’ The way Aubrey coaches and the way he pours into those guys, I think they feel it. I think I’ve heard Emmanuel talk about that. He challenges guys too. I think because he loves them, they enable him to be able to coach them hard and they know where that comes from and it’s not by mistake that guys usually play their best ball under his guidance and leadership.”
However it’s come to pass, it’s saved Emmanuel Forbes from the brink of bustitude, and kudos to the Rams for not only taking a flyer on a formerly disappointing player, but knowing how to make the most of his attributes in the right environment. In the end, that’s what coaching is really about.
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