My point being that by proposing the solution 'so we should care about them, in case that happens' you effectively are (or are equivalent to) that person, you're making it happen sooner (and for sure).
So your team not having metrics, they are more likely to go "wow that team is pretty empty of work, cut half of them (exaggeration of course) rather than "well they don't have any metrics so Ill take them at their word or wait and see".
Cynical maybe, but my best managers who've kept a team together and protected tended to be really effective at selling the work they're doing and how long it'll take and how much workload each team member has, and showing how busy the team is in a way thats impactful.