More in recent times, by writers that seem to think that the only way to have their character look good is to make Superman look weak.
Again, this is not true. As long as I've been reading comics (the early seventies), Superman has fought villains who have overpowered him initially and sometimes left him wounded and beat up. Superman has then had to use his wits and ingenuity to come up with a plan to defeat that villain.
You seem to be using the Superman from the fifties and sixties to defend your argument as those stories presented more of the types of situations you are referring to.