Don’t consider myself a casual or an elite, but:
9.05 may be meant to keep the players engaged for a few months until the next major patch is out… and we already know that gearing concerns for raids and Mythic keys have been addressed (which is a great decision on the part of Blizzard)… so as long as it doesn’t cause further delays in 9.1, I don’t see the issue in tweaking gear from World content.
If Blizzard is worth their salt, they will have numerical data on how many toons are doing what content. If a large portion of active players are not doing rated PvP, Mythic+, or non-LFR raids, then it would not be wise to ignore the World content to try to force people into the other content.
I don’t think that these 2 ideas are that outlandish. The Maw is an entire endgame zone. Torghast is an entire expansion feature. Gear is a reward that nearly any player would feel motivated by. No one is saying that it has to be Mythic BiS.
If the covenant sets are not strong enough, perhaps item level 197 jewelry, trinket, and weapon covenant gear could be added with even further bonuses that only apply in non-instanced content or in Torghast? Just an idea.
Anyhow, this expac has been a bad deal in terms of gear and loot for nearly everyone. Why focus on only the top of the pyramid, the more hardcore players who are going to stay a part of the grind regardless of what happens below them?