[oneijoe]

NOBODY has what you are talking about. So I can see why you're against platooning. What you have decided is the minimum requirement to do it is impossible to achieve. Its a logical non-starter

To the absolute contrary, I am FOR better depth on a team. But what I'm against is substitution for substitution's sake - giving little Johnny "his" turn to play because he works hard/is a senior/is so-and-so's son/etc.

The idea is to have your best-performing 11 players on the field at a given time. THAT is a vitally important job of the coaching staff. They have to anticipate the personel needs on offense and defense through the span of a game and set things up beforehand in order to maximize performance potential come playoff time (months later). Sometimes it's advantageous to start a slightly lesser player at a given position (to develop depth). Sometimes it isn't (the lesser player doesn't develop). Sometimes injuries throw the entire plan into chaos. But in any case, who to put where and how often aren't easy decisions.