43 you are the eternal optimist even when we were terrible you always looked for the possibility of how this team could be better. This year is different as this team is now a favorite a division title and in the hunt to win it all. I agree with all of your points but I think if anything you have understated the significance of these moves.
We added 3 elite level players in Suh, Cooks and Peters. Adding 1 elite level player is a huge accomplishment and we have added 3. I think that gives us a total of 5 elite players when you add in Donald and Gurley.
McVay, Snead, Phillips these guys are becoming the best in the business.
Goff: Yes he proved he can play but boy what is the upside for this guy. He body is still maturing and he has had to learn two offensive systems in the NFL after coming from a spread system that was mostly no huddle. No while there are no sure things in life it is not unreasonable to expect another huge leap in skill and performance. It is also reasonable to think that the supporting cast will be better too.
The Defense: We added 2 elite players to the defense and now 3 elite players on defense. We also have some players that are really good in Brockers, Joyner, Johnson, Barron, and Talib. Additionally we have a bunch of young and promising players at LB and defensive back. This defense could be great and very disruptive from a take away perspective.
Looking at the whole team: Great Special Teams near the top of the League. Offense expected to be a top 5 offense and well balanced. Defense should be great. Remember they all work together as special teams help the defense and offense and Offense and Defense help each other. The units all become better when their counter parts are better as they compliment and support each other. The sum of the parts is even better than the whole and the whole is great.
Now we did lose some good players and coaches but we are much better and so many of our players are still rising to their potential. We have 2 seasons where we should be able to retain key people under the cap and if we don't get to bit by the injury bug we should be in the hunt for the big prize. That is a long ways from where we have been the last 15 years.