I agree it has a shelf life, but I think that's better extended by angles not involving the title but keeping it main event sized.
Batista beat Bryan and Orton at Mania, Bryan can jump into a 3 or 6 month feud with Orton or Haitch before coming back around, assuming Batista still has the belt. You can make this chase have its little detours and keep doing it all year until the next Mania.
I strongly, STRONGLY feel that if you give Bryan the title and let him hold it for any significant amount of time right after Mania, you're making a mistake. You don't get a second chance for a significant reign. We're lucky that they robbed him of the belt ASAP last summer, because this would be far less compelling if he had been champion for a significant amount of time previous.