There are always ways to work around that issue, put it on a timed cooldown and make it instant for example.
It depends what you're looking for. In speedruns defensive utility loses a lot of its value but very few groups operate at a level where that makes a big difference, whereas every raiding team WILL do progression - where defensive utility shines the brightest.
In my opinion, both offense and defense need to be increased. Not increasing defensive utility would lead to issues of its damage needing to be exorbitantly high (read: overpowered) to be in a form worth playing.