Faster powders like 4064 or Varget may give you better performance with the shorter barrels. Handling in brush is improved with shorter barrels.
The down side is muzzle blast. I was with my son standing side by side, me with a 26" barrel '06 and him with a short barrel 223 shooting pigs as they popped out by an opening in a fence. His muzzle blast was deafening compared to the longer '06. Muzzle flash in the scope can be annoying in low light if follow up shots are needed. Putting on a flash suppressor kind of negates the advantage of the shortness.
I have an 18 inch barrel here, if you want to experiment with that length. I used this barrel with light loads of 3031 and 130 grain 30/30 flat point bullets. I do not remember it being too awful on the muzzle report, but my son probably shot it more than I did. At that time the barrel had the laser sight and I held the light while my son went into the field to kill the pigs.