cardsfanmd, I'll give this tiresome topic one shot from memory, just for you, because I think you are misinformed.
If I recall correctly and I think I do, in the 2000 draft year the conditions were these:
1. Bill Bidwill was still in total control of everything.
2. Ferguson was running the draft.
3. Mr. Beige, Vince Tobin was in his 5th and final year and under pressure.
4. Joe Greene was our dline coach.
Darwin Walker came in here, not just upset at not having been drafted in the first round, but thoroughly dissed and pissed off and let everybody know it. He made absolutely no effort in camp and both Ferguson and Tobin were in agreement to just dump him.
Tobin and Ferguson both knew their jobs were shaky and were trying to save their jobs, not coddle a petulant baby without his pacifier.
Since Bill was still in charge, the entire organization was indeed a dysfunctional mess. Not much they did or did not do went right nor is it relevant today.
ASFN did not exist then and Mike Olbinski and Bob Chebat were running azprosports.com, where most of us were posting. Mike had press access, I believe and his mother-in-law was Vince Tobin's personal secretary.
Mike was much more a hoops fan but did cover training camp and the draft in person. I was going to camp back then but only as a fan. Still, I stayed for the first 10 days of camp every year back then.
The organization was a lot more secretive back then.
Nidan's point is valid, I think. Using that snap shot of the year 2000 to make an analogy to today's Cards organization is just unfair to all involved, even to us on this board.
Clearly, everything about the Darwin Walker fiasco was a mess. And he shared in making it so. I can't prove it to you, not having saved radio interviews of Walker, Ferguson and Tobin. Yet, I assure you he did openly resist coaching and thought he was untouchable.
He was stunned the day he was cut. His attitude had been that we were lucky to have him here.
If this sounds like excuse making, so be it.