As Matt told us earlier today, Laveranues Coles appears primed for a third tour of duty with the Jets. Two years ago he entered camp as the number one receiver on the roster. After some key additions and a pair of down years, LC will sit fourth on the roster.
While he seems to be in decline, Coles does seem to be a better option in the slot the first four weeks of the year than Brad Smith, David Clowney, or Aundrae Allison. His production is still passable for a third option.
After that point things become less clear, though. It's tough to see where he really fits on the roster. He's not much of a special teams player. He won't see much time in conventional sets with Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, or Jerricho Cotchery on the roster. I don't think he'll even get playing time in four receiver sets. Dustin Keller will probably outpace him there.
He will be there for depth. I wonder if the Jets are looking to have him take guys like Edwards and Holmes under his wing. Both guys have had some off field issues in their careers, and New York can be an easy place to find trouble. Maybe the Jets want him to teach those guys how to conduct matters off the field. If Laveranues understands his on field opportunities will be limited and truly buys into the role, I could see him having a real positive effect.
Then again, maybe they're just waiting for Holmes to come back before letting LC go.