An email doing the rounds lists the Essendon team for the upcoming AFL season, with the photo of star recruit Brendon Goddard filling most positions on the field.
All comedy is cruel, but the joke reflects the uncertainty surrounding the Bombers in the wake of last week's stunning revelations about supplement use at the club.
Essendon head into Friday night's opening round of the NAB Cup pre-season while also dealing with a joint investigation by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) and the AFL.
There is no indication how long the investigation will take, but there is no doubt the ramifications will be massive.
On Sunday, AFL deputy chief executive Gillon McLachlan confirmed Essendon was the one AFL club being investigated for possible multiple breaches of the World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA) code following last week's Australian Crime Commission (ACC) report.
If the Bombers are found to have taken performance-enhancing substances, they are looking at doping bans.
Even if the investigation clears them of wrongdoing, there are major questions about the club's management of their sports science program.
Several key club figures, including coach James Hird, are feeling the heat.
The club's membership campaign features the motto "Whatever It Takes" and a large poster featuring the motto is no longer on the side of their Windy Hill headquarters.
Friday night's triple header will give the first indication of how the players are coping with the massive external focus on the club.
Captain and reigning Brownlow Medallist Jobe Watson said his team were holding up well.
"They're good. They're just waiting for the AFL and ASADA to do their investigation. That's all we can really do at the moment," he told Fox Sports.
"I'm happy that we've got the opportunity to play footy tomorrow night."
Asked how coach James Hird was coping, he said: "The good thing about footy clubs is that you have each other to lean on."
The ASADA investigation will most likely take months, but Watson said it was important that it was done properly.
"I think what you want to do in this situation is you want it to be as thorough and exact as possible," Watson said.
"However long that takes, it takes.
"Certainly the priority is for the correct findings to happen."
Watson will miss Friday's two mini-games with a knee injury, but is expected to return for their round-two NAB Cup match against Richmond in Wangaratta.
Essendon famously had to forfeit their Wangaratta pre-season match last year when they opted to fly the players to the Victorian country town.
But they were unable to land because of bad weather.
