In my opinion the condition of the wheels at this point in the mission profile is a 'duh', absolutely, but not necessarily a 'dud'. The investigators themselve

In my opinion the condition of the wheels at this point in the mission profile is a 'duh', absolutely, but not necessarily a 'dud'. The investigators themselves admitted they were surprised to learn that the design of the cantilever, combined with 'sharp pointy rocks on Mars that have been stuck in place for millions of years', as well as what is a near-obvious flaw in the chevron design, produced the current conditions. Lesson learned, but hardly a surprise. I'm not saying it was a failure, just that the cause of the problems is hardly surprising, or even unpredictable given the circumstances. But, as always, design and budget constraints produce a panoply of ways things can get - eventually - busted in production ..