In the book Skunk Works, Ben Rich laments that Lockheed was often passed over for contracts and missions because their achievements were so classified that the various branches of the military didn't know that things like stealth technology were possible, let alone already in production. Sometimes weren't even invited to bid on projects to develop technology that they'd already developed.

Marketing of secret projects is a tricky business!

Was it Lockheed who simply ran a regular marketing campaign for NGAD and then later scrubbed references to it

That's exactly what I was thinking too. With all the chainsaws on display and rumors of deep cuts, makes sense for them to explain a bit to regulars about why they exist and how well things are going.

one would be excused to think you made this account just for the sake of aptronym and comment, but alas, 3k+ karma

In fairness, it's an insightful comment. The behavior of plenty of agencies is likely to be erratic or at the very least novel in the current climate.