So the real problem, as I see it, is that there are at least three types of background features.
*Ones that are localized and seem only useful at low levels: here we have the Peasant, Noble, Criminal.
*Ones that have small impact but are useful at most levels: I'm going to put Outlander here. Technically, gathering food is a low level concern in most games, but it's not inconceivable that a DM might ban Goodberry and Create Food and Water because they want to extend the survival and exploration parts of the game into higher levels. Or that you find yourself in an inhospitable environment on some other plane of existence where magic is less reliable.
Alternately, the Sage. Information is critical to play, and there are going to be times where this feature will let you research some vital legend, prophecy, or lore.
*Ones that have potentially later game impact: let's look at The Hermit. We don't know what their big secret is. We only know it's intended to be plot relevant. No matter what kind of game you're running, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out a bit of hidden lore you could tell the player. The issue is when it's relevant, because you can probably only reward this feature once, with a dramatic reveal.
The fact that all three of these coexist, at first blush, seems odd, since their use can vary wildly in a game. But there's always a possibility to make a background relevant, even without it's feature.
Strahd, a nobleman himself, may not recognize the Noble's family, but breeding recognizes breeding, and he may extend certain...hospitalities to you and your party. Of course, whether that's an advantage or not is debatable, but her we see that a background can matter, even when it's feature has ceased to have much relevance.
On the flipside, being a former hermit is not likely to reward you in any circumstance, save that one moment where your feature pays off. But maybe that's worth it to the player.
And certainly, as you can see, these are tools for the DM. You can use them as plot hooks for players whose backstories always seem to make them orphans with no ties to anything.
That the wording of the PHB stresses that the backgrounds will matter, and that the features are intended to be relevant, and not just fluff, may seem unfortunate. I think the problem is that, for once, the game is trying to help newer DM's.
Older, more experienced DM's know exactly what to do with a backstory. Either chuck it into the bin in favor of your elaborate, rich campaign world, or exploit it ruthlessly (I've seen both ends of this spectrum over the decades).
But a newer DM might look at a background and think it's something to be ignored, but the PHB basically says "not so fast!" The problem is, it doesn't immediately point you to the relevant section of the DMG, or explain why backgrounds are a Big Deal.
When I started playing the game, many old adventures are written pretty much thusly:
*You find yourself in a new place.
*There are monsters about.
*The people need help and point you at locations where strange doings are afoot.
*The PC's are expected to go forth and deal with the threat, often with promise of a reward that will seem insignificant by the end of the adventure ("the townsfolk celebrate you as heroes, have a festival in your honor, give you 150 gp for the party, and you can claim free drinks if you ever come back, but of course this is the last time you will ever see or hear this place....onto the next module!").
In those days, it was sometimes hard to give players a reason beyond "adventure for adventure's sake" "do good because that's what heroes do" and "FOR THE EXPERIENCE POINTS!". And at first, this wasn't a big deal.
But as the story became more important to some over time (especially in the 2e era), needing built in hooks became more important. 2e Kits could help here a bit, but I see Backgrounds as a good way (not the only way!) to give PC's some abilities that make sense based on their history, and something to work with to develop the narrative of the game.
I would have liked to have this handed to me on a platter in 1989-1990 when I was a neophyte DM. I don't need the tool now, but it's nice to have.
That some of us really don't need this tool, and some don't particularly care to have it offered, because they have long since either rejected such notions or have found better ways, is a real bone of contention, as this thread shows (IMO).
5e, as usual, doesn't seem to know who it's target audience is. Wide-eyed newbies who have only heard of this legendary game, or battle-scarred veterans who still poke everything with 11' poles and strip bare dungeons of anything remotely valuable? Ideally, it would be both (and everything in between), and it sure tries, but the fact is, not all of it's parts seem written for all audiences. You find something pitched at one group, that fails to work for another.
Take the adage "no one reads the DMG". In the old days, we read DMG's cover to cover, multiple times, and slowly all the important bits sank into our minds (but even now, the venerable 1e DMG still has surprises for me!). But now, people need more than just a grab bag of information and tips- they need to know what they should be reading right now, instead of slowly discovering the nooks and crannies of the game.
If Backgrounds had a footnote that said "DM's, go to page 26 of the DMG for more information on backgrounds" and that information gave you a step by step method of truly integrating player backgrounds into the game, with a notation saying "hey, experienced DM's, this might not be for you, so here's some options for how to use (or not use) backgrounds in your campaigns!", maybe this would have been less contentious.
Because the first time I ever found my background feature could be relevant and brought it up, it was shot down by the "this guy has never heard of you" argument. Something that could have been avoided by someone saying "hey, background features aren't for all games, check with your DM before selecting one".
But instead, you pick it with the same fanfare as race, class, and alignment. Which is to say, not much at all, and that's just the wrong way to handle this sort of thing if a designer wants this to be an important feature to their game (which the text implies it was) and not just a weird add on (which later supplements imply it is).
