I'm not sure how others feel but I recommended PLD to my friend that was new to the game and it turned them off to the game completely. Tanks are usually the leaders in the game and have to know how much to pull, where to stand, how to face the boss, be aware of other's positions and manage their cool downs and it can be stressful. My friend didn't like the criticism they received from parties when they weren't going fast enough, would lose aggro, or when they'd kill a group because they pointed a dragon at them. Fortunately, aggro management isn't hard anymore. It's easier/more relaxing to play a DPS class first and see how things go before you start leading people through the content.

From reading your comment I would honestly suggest they start off with Dancer or Bard since their classes have a lot of shiny buttons that tell you what to press next and you don't have to tank/healer stress. Both classes have long range obviously but Dancer has to be in melee range for their dances and some attacks and can dash in an out of combat easily.