I don't really think that the 'two minute meta' was the problem. If it was just a matter of damage output, then that would have been iteratively addressed with potencies. The real problem is that players were using the age old 'complexity' argument to justify why PLD should have a dps advantage over the other tanks, in a throwback to its Stormblood launch glory days. It's unsurprising that this is the result. GLD and MRD are the two tank classes that complete beginners have access to on booting up the game for the first time, and if the 'general perception' is that they're 'too complex', then that's a problem. You're deterring new players from tanking.

The dps will likely be rebalanced anyways. But the primary goal of this rework is accessibility. And if you were satisfied with the level of 'challenge' that the job previously provided, you can thank this very subforum for wielding the Monkey's Paw in such a spectacularly predictable fashion.

That being said, I think PLD did need a second look. Some design elements like DV's activation were just clunky, and others are just vestigial (i.e. Shield Bash, as you've mentioned). While DV itself is simple to fix (just make it activate like Shake), I think that it's hard to justify the additional raidwide mitigation tool over other tanks, especially when you consider how important those raidwides can be. And they're likely going to be looking at ways to bring button counts back to the average, rather than keep them inflated.