Comfort, complacency, laziness. All of those stem from no competition being brought in. The attitude that everyone is "safe" is devastating to a team's attitude. I mean, no consequences for bad play, or even the remote possibility that you could be replaced out the window cause players to not give a damn.
The coaches have very little to fear either. Especially the golden boy, Garrett.
So, yeah, it's a big part of why Austin ran the wrong route.
That is exactly why this team has sucked for the better part of 16 years.
It all seems like common sense to me, but it's not something Jerry seems to comprehend.