It's important to set your goal. If your goal, like the OP, is to get as much travel as you can for your miles, then you'll be booking coach. I'm of the same mind right now, as the soft product up front has deteriorated, especially on US legacy carriers.

Once the goal is set, price benefit per mile is only one factor, not the only or even the most important one. If you want the most travel, who cares if someone else flies three trips in C while you get six trips in coach for the same number of miles, even if the three C trips would have cost twice as much to purchase in cash than your six coach trips? You got six trips, and doing that got you to your goal of getting the most travel for your miles.

Of course using the miles to your advantage is usually good too. On coach awards, you get extra value for little or no extra cost in booking trips that would have cost more for cash. Examples are stopovers, some open jaws, stays overseas of more than 30 days.