Make no mistake. The Dallas Fuel were supposed to be one of the top teams in the inaugural season of Blizzard’s Overwatch League, but right now this team is in a death spiral. Dallas is now a disappointing 5-12 in Stage 2 of the league after their 0-4 loss to the Boston Uprising on Wednesday.

However, wins and losses are not the only concern for the Dallas Fuel and first year head coach Kyle “KyKy” Souder.

Souder and his team–like all other esport teams–have found themselves under a microscope, being looked at by the league, sponsors, media, fans and the entire esports landscape. The scrutiny of the Fuel is indicative that there is a new era in esports–the era of legitimacy.

With esports being recognized as a legitimate form of sport and entertainment, money has been flowing into the scene. With the industry looking to pass the $1 billion dollar threshold in 2019, esports will now be looked at through the same lens as professional sports across the world.

And the media has a very long lens. The media have a job; searching for drama, scandal, and anything else interesting that creates views for their publications. They are on the hunt. But it isn’t just media that turns over rocks to see what’s on the bottom, it’s fans as well.

Souder knows this and took to twitter to address his concerns.

Would not be surprised if majority of players start completely closing themselves off from social media. OWL players have tried to make themselves so publically available only for fans to use it as an opportunity to shit on them. #blamekyky #firekyky #kykydie thats the meta rn. — Kyle Souder (@KyKy) March 16, 2018

He didn’t get the response he was looking for.

His tweet took Overwatch and Reddit by storm, with people claiming that he wrote the tweet to keep people from criticizing him over how the Fuel is performing.

How did a simple tweet with a clear topic get twisted into something entirely different on reddit? I love it lol — Kyle Souder (@KyKy) March 16, 2018

What Souder was referring to was the influx of insults that he and many of the Dallas Fuel players were receiving due to their poor record thus far in the Overwatch League. The coach and his players have made themselves available to the public, leaving their DM’s open, posting on Reddit, and being forthcoming during their personal streams. And while this seems like a great way to interact with their fans and grow the sport, a lot of the comments have been pretty harsh.

bruh maybe yall should stop being so sensitive. after every game you guys cry on twitter and apologize. imagine if after loss LeBron complained about it. Don’t blame the fans, blame yourself. You guys need to understand how to be in the spotlight. — Taylor Bronsan (@ThaSportAccount) March 16, 2018

Could you imagine a NBA/NFL coach releasing a tweet like this? You are supposed to be big time now, maybe you should act like a professional. — Mason Williams (@Mase_Williams) March 16, 2018

I get how hard it is dude but you wouldn’t get NEARLY as much shit with more transparency. You guys need to take a ‘here’s why we’re doing these things, take it or leave it” approach. Good reddit example: fans were mad/wondering why Philly was running Eqo was starting over SDB, — Sapphubutt (@TwitchSapphu) March 16, 2018

This is the first time you have ever tried to deflect blame from players on to yourself. IMO too little too late. You failed your players and the fans. Either step down or grow the up and learn about what it means to be a coach/mentor. — DroopSnoot (@TwitchSnoot) March 16, 2018

With his tweet, Souder unknowingly gave a great example of how fans can turn one subject into something completely different from what was intended. Growing attention from the media and fans is something that Souder and his team has been trained to deal with. They attended the Blizzard social media meetings and internal company meetings and yet some of his players still didn’t understand the scope and importance of these trainings. That’s why Félix “xQc” Lengyel no longer has a job and Timo ‘Taimou’ Kettunen has been fined and is on notice.

Souder is dealing with players that have come from an old culture of toxicity indoctrination. Unfortunately for the first year head coach, he was dealt a hand that came with one of the worst offenders in the game and a couple of others. He only has so much control.

Anyone that knows Souder, knows that he took this position with a complete understanding of all the scenarios that could play out, even this one–the darkest timeline. He doesn’t shy away from the heat of criticism or run away from the hard questions. He may not be as talkative as some of the other coaches in the league, but that doesn’t mean anything in terms of how serious he takes his position as head coach.

He isn’t afraid. He knows that coaches come and go. Just know, he isn’t ready to go anywhere yet.