Indeed. I've actually had AA FAs tell another passenger "it just has to be overhead for takeoff and landing, you can bring it down as soon as the seatbelt light goes off."

To the more general point, a lot depends on the specific exit row.

Ones I particularly like to miss, for example, are the front of the two rows on planes that have paired overwing exits - the front of the two exit rows won't recline.

One thing I really LIKE about exits is the in-armrest tray table. It gives some forced separation from the next passenger, and eliminates the worry that I'm going to spread into their seat (or vice versa, if they're also a hefty sort as I am.)