Except Pegula and Beane have both said publicly that the final call on the 53 is Beane's and I have spoken to two people who worked in that building, one a coach, on a personnel guy and both said the same - Beane takes the calls, no doubt about it. Do I believe he and McDermott are almost always aligned? Sure. But the accountability for the 53 is on the GM.
People can think what they like but they are making up narratives in their heads.