Variety claims in their article that while Sony and Marvel liked Vanderbilt’s SPIDER-MAN 4 draft, it was Raimi who brought aboard Lindsay-Abaire and Ross as Raimi didn’t “embrace all of Vanderbilt’s ideas.” So does Vanderbilt’s return for SPIDER-MAN films 5 & 6 hint that Raimi might not be around for those films? That’s obviously wild speculation at this point but perhaps Sony and Marvel are planning for a post-Raimi future and bringing aboard a writer that they approve.
Of course a SPIDER-MAN 5 may never even happen (with Raimi, Tobey Maguire or Kirsten Dunst) but Sony’s getting a script ready just in case.