Another argument over wording? That's OK because I like English.
So you used two terms, "developing" and "hone" in a way that would lead your readers to think they're the same thing. They're not.
Both hone and refine are synonyms of each other and of the word "perfect". All three words (hone, develop, refine) are related to each other in meaning but where the difference comes in, is in degree. I'm not disagreeing with the notion that a huge percentage of WRs need to "hone" or even to develop their skills to really make it in the NFL. The issue we've been discussing here is whether there are players whose game is already sufficiently advanced that they "only" need to "hone" or "refine" their skills versus those who need lots of work (develop).
I'm not using "develop" in way in which you aren't already intimately familiar with. When we drafted a QB in the 6th round, how was that pick described? A developmental QB right? Why isn't he described as someone who just needs to "hone' or "refine" their skills? You already know the answer to that so I'm no longer going to discuss the difference.
What I will talk about are elite prospects. That three year development time for most WRs is also frequently used when talking about QBs, and yet when we look at Andrew Luck we see that he started off his career at a very high level and while he's very good now, he will continue to refine and hone his skills throughout his career and become an even better QB. Probably. I've been a metrologist for more than 40 years and up until the day of my seizure I was still learning and getting better.
I can give you many examples of players at virtually every position who hit the ground running at a very high level. They are however, a very small fraction of the total. The only real question here, in my mind, is whether Watkins is one of those special players. I think he is and you don't. That's fine because he's not on our team, we'll know the answer to that shortly and more importantly, his performance this year will not change nor invalidate the
fact that those special players exist. As has been said before by smarter people than me, we're all entitled to our own opinions but not our own facts. My general contention concerning elite players is a fact but my contention that Watkins is one of those special players is merely my opinion. If, at the end of the year, we see that Watkins performed like I predicted, I
won't send you one of my infamous fruitcakes. You should be rooting for that outcome.
http://thesaurus.com/browse/hone
perfect
verb.
polish; achieve