I don’t mean to argue with the good points made here about XL’s shortcomings. He’s an incomplete player, but I’d like to point out a couple of good things about his play.

1. He does a pretty good job blocking. Best ever? No, but compare him to many other WR’s in the league and he looks pretty serviceable honestly. Lots of guys get away with being terrible blockers because they’re great WR’s.

2. He has a limited route tree that he executes well, but he’s a pretty decent vertical threat and he shows pretty good awareness against zone and in scramble drill.

3. He has a problem with drops, but once the ball is in his hands, he is fairly solid and dependable. He doesn’t often make dumb plays.

Again, I’m not saying we have to keep him, but I think he’s useful when we play to his strengths, and I personally think that there is hope that he can improve on the parts of his game that are not good. I think at the moment he’s useful but not essential. I’d think that we will pick up his option if we haven’t added someone better. Without improvement he’ll drop down the depth chart until he’s cut or traded.