The fundamental flaw with tfa is that it was rushed. From the moment Disney purchased I bet the pressure was on to get a film out ASAP and it shows.
I don’t think that was the main cause. I think they had to make something that would work for sure since it was their first product. The played it safe, went with proven concepts and rehashed stuff from OT. Actually, I expect more from stand-alone films since they will be able to experiment more. We will see.