Why does nobody talk about letting the drum settle before throwing meat on?

I fired up my offset two Saturdays ago for a brisket and it hit 275 way faster than normal, so I tossed the packer on at the 40 minute mark like I always do. The temp swung 60 degrees for the next two hours and I could not figure out why. Then it clicked: the coal bed was still putting off that thick white smoke and I was basically baking the bark instead of building it. I pulled the meat, let the fire burn down to thin blue for another 25 minutes, and put it back on. Best bark I have gotten in probably 8 cooks, and the flat probed tender at 203 instead of fighting me at 195. Now I wait for the stack to run clean no matter how late I am running. Anyone else learned this the hard way or do most folks just ride the temp and ignore the smoke?