The rifle is fine as is
Is it used a lot? Yeah
Know why? Because its the bog standard gun type that rarely changes in function from FPS game to FPS game so when someone sees it they think "Ok, I know this style of weapon and its familiar to me and because this game time locks weapons and bonuses I think Ill go for something I know I can use to good effect rather than spend a bunch of points on things I am unfamiliar with"

Thats also partially why SMGs are one of the most popular sidearms, familiarity and possibly why HMGs are more popular than forge guns

The more similar a weapon's name is to a modern FPS weapon the more it is used, that's my assumption. CCP should rename every weapon into something futuristic like the Sniper rifle would be the Heavy rail rifle, and the Caldari assault rifle would be the Light rail rifle or the Combat rail rifle, the Gallente AR could be the Plasma rifle or Plasma Carbine, I don't know about the projectile (Minmatar weapons).