They should have differentiated themselves as the premium sandwich brand because while subway is pretty good, Quiznos early on was a whole other level.

Absolutely this. Subway pre sliced meats and (at the time) lack of toasting was a perfect thing to target. 'Yeah you can pay $5 for a sub the size of a size ten foot with meats that come from a factory, but you get what you pay for. Here at Quiznos all our meats and cheese are sliced fresh in store, the bread is always fresh, and every sub gets perfectly toasted to order. Try us and see the difference.' (then show a wimpy subway sandwich next to a cheesy melty meaty quiznos sub).

Really is too bad. Here in CT, Jersey Mikes is expanding- their deal is they slice the meat right in front of you so it's fresher. They also do fresh grilled cheese steaks on a flat top grill, those are WAY better than the subway 'cardboard tray of single serving meat' approach.