Blame Beto and Stacy Abrams when dems fail to get a super majority. Even a 2008 style wave election is going to get them to 60 votes. Not because "dems suck lol" or anything like that...they just don't have the candidates to make it work. Talking about McConnell losing is fun, talking about Lindsay Graham losing is fun...but truth be told both will be re-elected. Doug Jones is probably going to lose in Alabama. And even dems picking up AZ/NC/ME/MT doesn't get them to 60.
To me the question is simple: how bad does Biden want to be a consequential figure? If he just wants to be a transitional figure that removes Trump and rides the wave wherever it takes him...he will probably be a one term president because the economy is going to be trash and conservatives will do everything in their power to rip the country apart on the state level (guns, police protections, more attacks on Obamacare, etc).
If Biden wants to be a consequential figure, he will have to destroy senate protocol by eliminating the filibuster. It is the only path forward if he wants to pass the big, bold stimulus he will need to jumpstart the economy. Including payments to Americans. It's the only way to restore Obamacare funding and add a public option. McConnell will not allow bills to pass without 60 votes. Even if he did, Rand Paul is there to stifle any progress. Do you just sit back and cry about it, or do you put your balls on the table and take a risk? I can see Biden trying to reason with republicans first...and I'm fine with that. He's a man of the senate, he will try to talk common sense with republicans friends he has worked with before. But...they will not budge. And how Biden deals with that will determine his fate.