Golds do get priority boarding, but as for exit row seats, I didn't read that into the original post. I think the ability to get exit row seats has nothing to do with your status on Delta. I'm AS MVP and have been flying Delta a lot lately (in and out of ATL). I've had good luck getting exit row seats (I generally grab them when I do online check-in. I think they might be released day-of-flight, though I'm not really sure as my travel agent usually books my original seat assignment so I don't get a look at the seat maps till I go to check in).

As for the Delta "product" overall, I'm not blown away. It's not truly abysmal, but it's not great, either. I haven't found the cabin crews to be particularly friendly, and whether or not the plane leaves on time seems to be of little concern (they tend to stand up front and watch the boarding process rather than actively participating in it by helping people find bin space, etc.). So far in the flights I've done in the past few weeks the flights have all ended up roughly on time, but a few minutes here or there doesn't seem to be a concern and I don't think a single flight has pushed back on time. My best description of the overall attitude would be "neutral." There's not a lot of positive energy for the job, but there's not active hostility either.