So, what is the point of using the Heavy Machine Gun?

This is in no way a rant, just a genuine question.

I have over 300 hours at this point and decided to try it out, after the latest patch.

To me, it feels like it’s the only stratagem that is completely useless in every situation. Is anyone else having an issue with finding purpose for this gun?

Is it just skill issue or am I not using it right? I just feel like if you want to clear out small-medium enemies, every other option is better, and obviously it’s not a good pick against heavies compared to the rest of our tools.

I’m genuinely curious if anyone found a good way to run it and still be a useful teammate. I play on difficulty 9 for context.