Reminder once again that Sage Advice is only advice. JC is often wrong IMO, and thus at my table he's wrong.
I actually liked the notion of non-plus shields implemented in 4E. Given 5E's bounded accuracy, I decided not to give out +x shields, because if they get stacked with magical armor and a ring of protection (to to mention the occasional spell AC boost) you get the near untouchable PC. Having experience with this nonsense, I know this is really bad for the game.I knew there was a reason why I do not give out +shields.