Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said he wanted to put players in the best positions to utilize their skills recently. That sounded like a completely normal thing to do for a coach.
However, Quinn answered the question about cornerback Emmanuel Forbes working with the return team. Some took Quinn’s comments as “He can’t play cornerback, so we have to find something he’s good at.”
That’s not what Quinn said or meant. In college, Forbes had a knack for intercepting opposing quarterbacks and returning them for touchdowns. So, it made sense that Forbes would be good with the ball in his hands. That’s what Quinn meant.
Washington opened its mandatory minicamp on Tuesday, and Forbes was still working with the return team. This time, wide receiver — and fellow former first-round pick — Jahan Dotson joined him.
Here’s a photo courtesy of Ben Standig.
Meanwhile, Emmanuel Forbes and Jahan Dotson worked as punt returners. https://t.co/NkdeWxIOT7 pic.twitter.com/13UCjxAwUw
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) June 11, 2024
Here’s Forbes in action via Mitch Tischler:
Emmanuel Forbes returning punts pic.twitter.com/Z0rCwEVa8m
— Mitchell Tischler (@Mitch_Tischler) June 11, 2024
Dotson has some experience returning punts from his time at Penn State. He didn’t do it a lot, but when he did, he averaged 13.5 yards per return with one touchdown. The previous coaching staff made a lot of mistakes, but it’s hard to blame them for not putting in Dotson as the punt returner because he was a starting wide receiver. You don’t want to take a chance of one of your top offensive players getting injured on special teams.
Regarding Quinn’s comments about putting players in the best position to utilize their skills, this is another example. It doesn’t mean Quinn or the coaching staff is down on a player because they have them returning punts or kicks. It’s looking for an advantage.
We don’t know what the coaching staff thinks of Forbes. They’ve said all the right things. He’ll have every chance throughout training camp to show them he can make an impact on the defensive side of the ball.
