I would say, 'in the universe acquiring that player in a position of strength and depth prevents us from acquiring players in positions of weakness and lack of depth'. Managing an NFL team's personnel is a zero sum game.
I am completely with you and was just playing devils advocate if the move were to happen. Everyone knows he wasn't close to right last year and I do believe he still has some plays left in him but not on this team. Just for clarifications sake...
I believe it's the fear of the doomsday scenario where either 18 or 87 goes down for any length of time. Having a salty veteran to step in is typically a better tourniquet than a green pea. I played the devils advocate earlier in this thread regarding the signing of a guy like WW but in reality I much prefer the young guys getting a shot. I think you obviously have to be prepared for injuries but at what cost? If the coaches don't think Janis and or Abby could step up at some point then I don't understand why they would be on the team. For instance I am sure the coaches had no intention of Linsley starting every game last year but due to injuries that became a reality and in this particular instance worked out smashingly! David B. the year prior when Bulaga went down in a heap. Another thought of mine is just because the #4 didn't do much last year doesn't necessarily mean the coaches wanted it that way. I would venture to guess there are plenty of plays with a 4 WR set they would like to show but if the players aren't quality enough to warrant such looks I see no reason why they would run them. Boykin fell off the face of the earth last year and I believe if he had played to a similar level as '13 he would've been much more involved. Dude couldn't catch a cold last year so the coaches couldn't trust him to be out there. I love the possibilities of Janis and Abby being players next year and fully expect them to! Like the Bad News Bears said, "let them play! let them play!"...
Chances are we'll have neither.
He did catch 77% of his targets last season, higher than his career average.
This goes back to the Janis argument. I know he is raw but the kid has a rare blend of size and speed the likes of which aren't on many rosters. If he dedicates himself to his craft, and it sounds like he has been, I see no reason why he couldn't begin to pose problems for defenses as soon as next year. I know there is no guaranteeing this but the kids athleticism cannot be denied. 6'3", 220 LBS, 4.42/40YD, 37.5" vert and 20 reps at 225 lbs. is enough to put one in the "freak show" category. The route running and catch consistency obviously needs work but that's exactly what he has been doing this past year so I see no reason we shouldn't see a pretty significant change in his play on the field. McCarthy went out of his way to praise Jeff and I don't think he would do that for any other reason than to praise a youngster for putting in his work and showing consistent improvement. I am not saying JJ is going to be great or score 8-9 TD's next year rather I expect him to see the field a fair amount and I am telling you when he touches the ball he is flat our electric. The NFL has the best of the best in the world and his measurables stack up well against just about anyone in the league. If the work ethic is there as well I will be really disappointed if he doesn't turn out to be a pretty salty player at some point and I wouldn't be shocked if it came as soon as next season.
Rodgers will be OK. The adjective used was "threatening"; I don't see that from him.
For the same reason it's important to have a guy like Barclay on the bench. Last season was remarkably injury free; that's not likely to happen again.
Who were other wr at those times?
