...the reason to act manual ONLY AFTER the stick shaker was activated was to fly level as long as was safely possible to get closer to the airport area.
You surmise.
They did not have the luxury of unhurried, logical analysis. They may or may not have been able to do things differently with better results but, given my guess they were overwhelmed by an impossible situation, the instinctive flap retraction was a gut feeling and saved the day, the late AP disconnect was a reaction not a planned action.
Why can't this pointless speculation cease and people just wait for the definitive account and analysis which will be published sooner rather than later?