Yeah, it actually incentivizes short hauls, which can go for as low as $15 each way for DD members from ATL.

Maybe part of the motivation is to get more people excited about the FF program. I think they've been too aggressive on the mileage expiration (in non-Covid times) and the international awards still look overpriced on miles. It's probably controlled by computer algorithm but they tend to rise from 10K to 20K domestically for a one-way even in some cases where the paid fare is still two figures.