Team orders suck as far as competition is concerned. McLaren is also a hot mess when it comes to making decisions in real time during a race so maybe this will help them simplify things while they figure out how to run at the front again...
At the same time I hate it for Oscar. He's been doing an excellent job this season and it sucks to have your progress stamped out mid season for the benefit of the team.
He seems closer to Lando pretty much across the board this year. There's certainly an argument to be made that they are the strongest driver pairing on the grid.
So McLaren bought into the media hype that they are in the race. Which is a shame, we already have a fantastic season with interesting races on our hands, there is no need for artificial intrigue.