[neatoman]

Alright so we know that the Foot Clan in FW used to be what it is in most other incarnations, an ancient band of ninjas that continue to this day. Where the Fred Wolf incarnation differs however is that it appears to be almost completely robotic, meaning that the human members have been removed. Since we don't ever see Shredder command any real people aside from some street thugs he sent out to do some petty tasks, it really puts his leadership into question as he's seemingly the only real member left.

In turn this also brings up the question of what the humans did after Shredder replaced them. It's entirely possible, since seemingly none remained, that just went on as usual without him. Which would mean that not only is Shredder's leadership in question, he wouldn't even be part of the Foot Clan at all, but rather some loser with walking tin cans.