The Washington Redskins sit at 2-2 in the NFC East, half a game ahead of the hated Dallas Cowboys and 1.5 games back of the Philadelphia Eagles. With the Cowboys playing poorly and the New York Giants dead-in-the-water, the Redskins have a good chance of challenging the Eagles for the divisional crown but they have to find a way to make up for a huge injury that just affected their defense - Josh Norman.

Josh Norman injury

Josh Norman has been the Washington Redskins best cornerback since he joined them after leaving the Carolina Panthers. Norman has a big mouth but he has the talent and skills to cover the best receivers in the NFL and shut them down most of the time.

However, Norman fractured his rib and there is no telling how long he will miss playing time.

Norman was out of practice on Monday and that is when head coach Jay Gruden said that he needed to get further evaluations to determine the timetable for his return. Gruden said that more information would become available by Wednesday. However, it is likely that Norman won't be back on Sunday when the Redskins take on the San Francisco 49ers.

The good news is that the Redskins might not need Josh Norman in that game. The 49ers rank 17th in passing offense and Brian Hoyer has only thrown four touchdowns this season. Opening the season with five straight losses, the Redskins should overpower San Francisco even without their top cornerback.

Who will replace Josh Norman?

There is a chance that the Washington Redskins could be without Josh Norman for more than just one week, and if that happens, it means they will be without their top corner when they travel to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles on Oct. 23. If that happens, it could mean bad things for Washington.

The first thing that the Redskins secondary needs to do is to have the safeties understand that they need to cover for the loss of Norman. Rookie Montae Nicholson said that Josh Norman tells the safeties not to worry about his side because he can handle it and now they have to be able to communicate more with each other.

Here is who the Washington Redskins have to look at when it comes to replacing Josh Norman in the starting lineup.

Quinton Dunbar replaced Norman after the injury against the Kansas City Chiefs. Fabian Moreau is a rookie who will start for the Redskins in the future and might get a chance to show his worth now.

Kendall Fuller played on the outside in college at Virginia Tech, so he could move to Josh Norman's position and work with the top receivers.The Washington Redskins have some nice options, and while they are not up to Norman's level, they should keep them competitive.
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