Was he ever Oscar-worthy outside of blatant Oscar-bait roles?

Unlike some of his contemporaries, who will do anything for a paycheck, he's limited himself to Oscar-bait roles in recent years.

It's actually a brilliant career strategy, and gets you top of the list for those coveted Oscar-bait roles.

It depends: are you asking outside a question?

It depends how you qualify. A film like Phantom Thread is not typical 'Oscar bait'.

If you mean, was he ever good in roles which didn't manage nominations then yes - The Unbearable Lightness of being for one, which is one of his very best performances.

Maybe Last of the Mohicans? Or are you basically asking if ever did any non dramas? Then no not really.

His best performance for me is his role in In the Name of the Father, he’s brilliant in that and felt natural whereas in things like Gangs of New York and There Will be Blood, you know you’re watching him “disappearing” into the role and whilst it’s good acting, it feels a little passionless.

The answer is "no". It's why I can't rank Day-Lewis above guys like De Niro or Pacino despite him having the trophies and the obviously great performances to prove that he is in running for GOAT

He is an absolutely great actor, no doubt. And his performances are usually must-watch. But I think he proves that there is such a thing as being TOO selective. It's almost like a boxer/MMA fighter that cherrypicks his fights and retires with a sterling record but without having taken too many chances

I'm not saying that Johnny Depp or Heath Ledger were better than him or even in his league, but they both got noms while starring in Action blockbusters. My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood, and Lincoln each gave Day-Lewis SO much room to showcase his talents