The Washington Commanders placed running back Austin Ekeler on injured reserve and continued their purge of past failed first-round picks by releasing corner Emmanuel Forbes Jr., John Keim of ESPN reports.

Ekeler suffered a concussion when returning a kickoff in the final seconds of a 34-26 loss to Dallas last week and now will miss at least four weeks.

Washington (7-5) plays Tennessee (3-8) Sunday, but has a bye on Dec. 8 so Ekeler might only miss three games, if he is able to return. After the play, Ekeler lay on the ground without moving before being helped up and walking woozily to the sideline.

Ekeler also missed a Week 4 game at Arizona with a concussion. He leads Washington's running backs with 701 yards from scrimmage -- he has rushed for 355 yards and has another 346 receiving. Washington signed running back Chris Rodriquez Jr. to the roster earlier this week to back up Brian Robinson Jr. and Jeremy McNichols.

Forbes was the 16th pick in the 2023 draft, selected ahead of corners such as New England's Christian Gonzalez and Pittsburgh's Joey Porter Jr. Washington's previous front office and coaching staff liked that Forbes was adept at taking the ball away. He intercepted 14 passes in his career at Mississippi State, setting a Division I record with six returned for a touchdown.