Kenny Britt Injury: Why Nate Washington Will Disappoint as Replacement

While the results from his MRI have not been made public yet, the Tennessee Titans believe they have lost wide receiver Kenny Britt for the season with a knee injury. In a best-case scenario, Britt will miss several games, but the team is not optimistic about his status.

Assuming Britt is gone for the year, veteran Nate Washington will step into the No. 1 receiver spot. Washington had a nice game on Sunday after Britt went down, hauling in eight catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. The seven-year veteran out of Tiffin University (where?) has played very well this year and will be a solid target for quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. But don't go thinking Britt will be easy to replace.

Through three games this season, Washington has 21 catches for 258 yards and a touchdown. Those are very good numbers, but with Britt sidelined, teams will now be able to focus on shutting down the 28-year-old.

Washington is a solid receiver. He is fast, but isn't a particularly good route-runner, and he doesn't have explosive ability in the open field. What makes Britt such a special receiver is his ability to explode past defenders and go up and get tough balls in coverage despite being a big 6'3" 215-pound guy. Washington checks in at 6'1", 177.

In addition to that, Washington's career high in receptions was 47 in 2009. He simply isn't used to being a No. 1 target and getting serious attention from a defense.

Again, Washington will be a solid guy stepping in as a target for Hasselbeck, but the surprising 2-1 Titans will need contributions from the entire receiver depth chart to make up for the loss of Britt. Guys like Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins must quickly turn into reliable targets, or defenses will key to shut down Washington and running back Chris Johnson.

Don't expect Washington to replace Britt all on his own. It will take a team effort to make up for the loss of such a big-time play-maker.