I don't see why they didn't just add the couch mechanic to the kick. When you're infantry and on the ground, you would have the dot by your weapon. It would work the same way as couching. Long cooldown on a kick, whenever the dot is grey then you have a kick available, when it was red then it's on cooldown. Simple and effective way to regulate the kicks. Turn it into a tool that you have to execute flawlessly to reap the benefits, without the spam.
In my opinion this tips the balance too much towards shielders, when it's already in their favor.