If that's all, then why ever bother with making protection circuits (or when building larger arrays building protection into the array)?
Protected cells are the most useful for devices that don’t have their own built in low voltage or high current protection.
Arrays need battery management to balance charge so a dead cell doesn’t destroy the entire pack.
For uses where individual cells are regularly removed from a device for recharge, I actually think they are more dangerous than unprotected cells because the cell positive is run the entire length of the battery through a thin metal strip. If the plastic wrap is damaged in just the right way, a short between the positive strip and the cell body completely defeats the short/overcurrent protection and could start a fire (because the entire cell body is negative).