I mean, I definitely recognize that feats can unbalance the game and make lvl 1 characters super powerful, which can result in swingy combat. A level 2 barbarian with GWM and Charger is very OP - their attack has +15 damage.
Potentially the "free feat" list could be a restricted list, including all the less common feats that are more flavorful than strictly powerful: Athlete, Martial Adept, Skilled, Tough, etc.
Though I still recognize that this further diminishes the impacts of leveling up compared to your character's power at level 1. I would prefer if characters gained both feats and ASIs during level up, but here we are...
