Dublin's lack of a clear identity is one of the reasons for their current struggles, according to former Donegal footballer Brendan Devenney.
The Dubs, after scraping past Wicklow in their Leinster opener, have lost two championship games on the spin and go into Tuesday’s morning’s football draw knowing one more loss and their summer will come to a conclusion.
It has been a challenging maiden season in charge for Ger Brennan, whose 12-week suspension arising from the league means he has been absent for all four of their championship outings thus far.
The most recent reversal came at the hands of Louth in Croke Park, who exacted revenge for their provincial semi-final defeat to the Boys in Blue just last month.
Hugh O’Sullivan, a late replacement for Evan Comerford between the sticks, conceded four goals to the Wee County as the Dubs now find themselves in last chance saloon, with All-Ireland champions Kerry and Connacht champions Roscommon among those also awaiting their fate in 2B.
Speaking on RTÉ's Inside Sport, Devenney says that after such decorated success under Jim Gavin and Dessie Farrell, there was always going to be a period of transition.
While there was little change in personnel while Sam Maguire resided in the capital, new faces are coming in now and looking to make a mark.
"Goalkeeper Hugh O’Sullivan coming in is a sign of that," Devenney said.
"Andy Moran rang the changes for Mayo and he brought in Jack Livingstone in goals, but he’s coming in to a much more settled team.
"At the minute Dublin don’t really know their identity.
"I don’t know if you blame Hugh for the goals – one of them, the high ball in with James Maguire coming in, maybe he should have been protected more – but I thought it was a sign of this Dublin team.
"You are seeing bright sparks in patches of play from them, but all-in-all, they are not too sure who they are as a team at the minute.
"Louth are a team on the way up and gunning for a team like Dublin.
"It’s a really tough job now for Ger Brennan."
The Round 2B draw will involve the eight losers in Round 1, who will be drawn to play against each other, with the first team drawn having home advantage.
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