Inconsistency with regard to an event in the Resurrection of Freiza Arc and the Future Trunks arc
Maybe it was to show how out of touch Gohan had become with Martial Arts and fighting, that he had to power up to the point of self destruction for Goku to detect him.

It also helps because of the fact that he knew where he had to look for the ki.

Like you, I think it is lazy writing. Like Krillin going up against SSB, however much Goku was holding back, that was just pure bs.