I do agree with most of the above but then you look at the league table and teams paying much lower wages than us are having a right go at promotion
Blackburn
Millwall
Luton
Preston always finish above us
Brentford have made it, Palace, as many many clubs in the past that would be lower payers than us. Burnley (at the time of their first promotion), QPR, Reading, Swansea, Cardiff presumably similar to us, Blackpool, Huddersfield, etc etc the list goes on.
I appreciate some of it is cyclical but we have to take the chance when we peak (2008, 2017,2018) and we never do.