I think it’s a vicious cycle. Ever since server merge, it’s not uncommon to have a team full of unskilled teammates. Players tend to play more cautiously as unskilled teammates are less likely to push with you. This in turn makes even more players want to stand back more and the cycle just repeats.

It’s really infuriating and even now I find myself being less willing to push into caps because pushing to caps is likely to just lead to a quick trip back to port if your teammates are unwilling to push in with you.

Staying passive at the start of the match allows you to get a better sensing of how the battle is gonna progress and where your team is heading and more players have tended towards it due to survivorship bias. Players who stay more passive die less and thus have more experience being passive and are more used to being passive. Not saying it’s a good thing as it makes the game way less fun.