That could be...but I always suspected it had to do with concussions as well, and that Welker had a concussion in the 2012 offseason that wasn't discussed much. I thought the Pats were trying to stash him away without giving away their gameplan and hoping to limit him for awhile until they were more confident in his health. However, when injuries hit, they threw caution to the wind.
I don't really have solid evidence to back it up, but it must be true, because you can't prove it didn't happen, nor can you prove the Patriots didn't cheat in every game in NFL history.