The ground has shifted under Paul McGregor this week.
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He's hardly the only NRL coach walking a treacherous path, with pressure mounting on Dean Pay as the Bulldogs struggle and Anthony Seibold, after Brisbane's 59-nil capitulation to premiers the Roosters.
The difference is the Dragons have had the chance to build the squad McGregor wants, he has said so himself.
The listless defeat to the Warriors, after more than two months in COVID-19 enforced lockdown, triggered the sentiment he's fast running out of time.
On social media, frustrated fans have long vented their anger, to the point they're asking media types, including this columnist, why we aren't agitating for change.
The simple answer is, there has been little appetite for a change of coach within the club - and the appointment of Shane Flanagan and Phil Gould's review allowed for clear air to move on from last year's disaster.
As reported this week, the Dragons are too cash-strapped to implement all of Gould's recommendations and face a million dollar payout if they show McGregor the door.
But following the Warriors loss, officials, particularly those Kogarah-aligned, are shuffling their feet and shooting sideways glances at WIN Corporation's Andrew Gordon, wondering if the family's television business suit pockets might be deep enough to make it happen.
There's a snowball effect happening which under-fire coaches rarely recover from.
Consider the mounting issues and the negative momentum they carry.
The Jack de Belin rape allegations brought unwanted external scrutiny and while it may not have split the playing group, it produced some passionate and polarising opinions internally about it.
State of Origin forward Tyson Frizell is leaving for Newcastle next year because he wants to "win a premiership", his own words, hardly a vote of confidence in his current teammates.
McGregor has fiddled with team selections, with Zac Lomax, the chosen one at fullback, quickly moved back out to the wing and the centres as they search for answers.
The ongoing switches between Gareth Widdop, Matt Dufty and Corey Norman, which has now evolved into Norman moving into the No.1 jersey and Adam Clune making his debut against the Bulldogs on Monday, add to the lack of clarity about their direction.
The Dragons bought Ben Hunt to be the key playmaker they've been missing, but now want to take the pressure off him, by handing the organisational reins to debutant Adam Clune, who celebrates his 25th birthday against the Dogs.
Now young winger Jason Saab has asked - and been denied - an immediate release, while left languishing behind Jordan Pereira and Mikaele Ravalawa in the pecking order and without a reserve grade competition to play in.
Add in Reuben Garrick's success at Manly - though the Dragons could not have anticipated Nene Macdonald's departure at the time - and the decision not to pursue Brett Morris, it all feels like the club has let the opportunity for an era of sustained success slip.
With the pressure mounting, the Dragons then failed to adapt to the rule changes around the ruck with one referee and could not come up with a single well-executed try-scoring raid against the Warriors, who admittedly were almost flawless.
Of course, the Dragons could easily beat the Bulldogs, Sharks and Titans, be 3-3 for the season and right back in the finals hunt.
But even then the doubt remains about the Dragons' prospects and McGregor's future, when the real pressure tests come against the Roosters and Raiders.
And the Bulldogs have a recent habit of inflicting blows on the Dragons at the worst times.
Flanagan's head coaching ban until 2022, the Sharks' ASADA hangover, means if they sack McGregor, then Plan B and C involves an interim taking over until then, or finding the next best available coach instead, which despite fans pleas is unlikely to be the return of Wayne Bennett.
McGregor and Dragons fans should be expecting an emphatic response on Monday, or else there might just be no way back.
