When actually battling, the above doesn't really matter. In real life you cannot swing a sword as fast as throwing a punch. It's understandable why Link has more frames for a attack because you are swinging something that's has some weight, Plus Link is holding a shield as well which also affects the speed of a swing. Smash bros is pretty much basing physics on real life situations as opposed to the physics of said Franchise. What I'm implying is who cares if Link has about 5 frames more than Mario's punch, doesn't mean he sucks, it's just natural that it takes longer to swing a sword than throw a punch.
Yeah, I understand that completely, but in tournaments where every frame is the difference, those extra three frames it takes for Link to attack over his opponent is enough to make him lose. Every match. The tier list is based on tournament settings, and that is what says Link is bad.
Trust me, I've used Link for years and have never entered a tourney. I've played against friends (who are terrible :bleh and CPUs in all my days. Link does not suck here. Link is not bad in casual matches, he is bad in the best of the best, where he technically doesn't compare to anybody.