I think the idea is that the soviets have call in infantry to supplement their army. Grens also get rolled by armor in the same way that all other infantry do, and they lose to shocks and LMG rifles as well. The only difference is their effective range is much longer so it is easier for them to engage/disengage from bad situations.
Also, you guys....try penals, get to min range and watch the health bar drop. At vet 2 you get oorah, and you'd be surprised at all the funny shit you can do with sachels. Also, snipers and m3 in the same tier make it great fun. Volks, sturms, and grens all saw a tone down in close range DPS, where penals shine. Give them a shot
shit I just realize I had a typo in my post!!! I really meant to say "nobody wants cons to be like grens". sorry for the confusion!!!!!!!!!!!!!