Rodney and Samuel Hood are described as commanders who repeatedly rescued one another operationally. Had Rodney reached New York with Hood, his seniority as Admiral of the White could have let him demand immediate replenishment and take the combined fleet south. His rank, the accelerated resupply, and the resulting fleet movement supply a practical mechanism for the larger Chesapeake counterfactual. The movement and its result remain explicitly hypothetical.
Notable Point · 2:16:43-2:17:36
How Rodney's seniority might have changed Chesapeake
Rodney's rank could hypothetically have forced rapid resupply in New York and sent a larger combined fleet south with Hood.