AVERY signs on with Titans

Posted by Ryan Wilson

Now that Kenny Britt is officially done for the season after suffering a knee injury against the Broncos Sunday, the Titans are in need of a wide receiver to replace him on the roster. The team put at least seven players through the paces the last two days: David Clowney, Mardy Gilyard, Johnnie Lee Higgans, Tiquan Underwood, Buster Davis, Donnie Avery and Juaquin Iglesias.

On Wednesday, the Titans settled on Avery, the Rams' 2008 second-round pick who was released earlier this month. The 27-year-old came into the league with 4.3 40 speed, but was slowed by an ACL injury that kept him sidelined for all of 2010.

In his first two seasons, Avery totaled 100 receptions for 1,263 yards and eight touchdowns. Solid numbers on bad teams, although relative to other NFL wideouts, Avery's performance ranked near the bottom. In 2008, according to FootballOutsiders.com, he was 75th in total value among all wide receivers, and 71st in value per play. Those numbers actually worsened in 2009: Avery was 80th in total value and 77th in value per play.

But the Titans aren't expecting Avery to replace Britt, one of the NFL's most dynamic pass catchers. They just need someone to complement Nate Washington, now the de facto No. 1 receiver.

When the Rams released Avery earlier this month, the St. Louis Dispatch's Jim Thomas wrote that the team "weighed what he could do to stretch defenses with his speed against his injury history and the fact that he didn't seem to come down with many contested balls. It's perhaps another indication, too, that offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels likes bigger receivers."

Whether Avery is capable of stretching defense or coming down with contested passes remains to be seen. But it's not like the Titans have a lot of options at this point. And who knows, maybe this is the week running back Chris Johnson starts earning that new contract.

It'll be interesting to see if Avery really is as worthless as he's been made out to be, and if he can stay healthy.

I'm torn. I wish Avery the best and hope he does well but I also don't want to read through 98 threads about how our front office sucks if he catches a ball.

Every F.O nightmare, seeing a cut player tear it up on another team.

But with the way DX is playing, i think we made the right call. Wish him all the best except when playing the RAMS.

I really hope Avery can make a comeback. I truly believe he still has talents.

With Britt gone, the Titans will be looking for a down-field option. Hopefully he can rebound and find some playing time.