Washington Commanders rookie cornerback Emmanuel Forbes played a significant role in his team's 20-17 victory against the New England Patriots on the road. Amid an inconsistent quality of play in his first season as a pro, Forbes stepped up in Week 9 and recorded three total tackles and a pair of defended passes.

Forbes' performance versus the Patriots was certainly not lost on Commanders head coach Ron Rivera.

“Forbes had a good day yesterday,” Rivera during Monday's press conference (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk). “He played with a little bit more confidence, he’s doing a lot of things that we asked for. Like I said though, he’s got a ways to go. There’s some detailed things that he has to pay attention to, he must pay attention to if he’s going to be a really good player in this league.”

Forbes, who was selected in the first round (16th overall) by the Commanders in the 2023 NFL Draft, was at one point benched for an entire game by Rivera, which was back in Week 6 against the Atlanta Falcons on the road. Since then, however, it appears that Forbes is showing gradual improvement.

With Forbes and the Commanders' defense against the pass, Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was not able to do much with the ball. Jones needed 44 pass attempts to rack up only 220 passing yards with a touchdown and an interception.

The Commanders will look to sustain their form with the hope that Forbes also carries over his success into the next game against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10.