Big Show Vs. Rusev

Rusev won his feud against Mark Henry. The story continued past Night of Champions with this angle of Mark Henry being devastated about the loss. Enter Big Show to feud with Rusev.

Let me start with what I like. I like how they transitioned from one feud to the other. Big Show and Mark Henry were teaming together. It was likely that Rusev would move up the ladder and feud with a guy like Big Show after Mark Henry. How they did it was pretty good. I also like how this is not just another patriotism story. That was getting old and they were going to run out of options very soon. Having Big Show trying to avenge his friend is a nice element to add to the story of this feud.

I would have held off on putting Big Show in there. There is still time until the next PPV. Big Show and Rusev could have had their next encounter there after the initial encounter they ended up having on Smackdown recently. Have the feud between Mark Henry and Rusev go on a little more. Sell that story a little longer. With how much time you have left, they might not develop this feud with Rusev and Big Show well.

Or is there more to it than just a feud between Big Show and Rusev? Can you imagine Mark Henry snapping over his recent failure and turning on Big Show? Is that the match they will go for at Hell in a Cell? I don't think they should. These two have feuded before. I don't think they need to feud again, especially so soon. And with a lack of top faces with Roman Reigns now out, I don't think you should turn a top face heel. Could you imagine Big Show and Mark Henry having a friendly feud over who gets to face Rusev? That sounds familiar. Cena and Ambrose both want Seth Rollins. I don't think what you have going on with Big Show, Rusev, and Mark Henry needs that. Nevertheless, I am expecting something more from the story you have with Big Show and Rusev. They faced each other last week and a rematch is already set for next week. After that, what happens with the story?

Does Orton Deserve Better?

Last year, Randy Orton had a few runs with the title, including unifying the two World titles and heading into Wrestlemania as Champion. But the focus never seemed to be properly on him. The feud between Daniel Bryan and Triple H just overshadowed him around Wrestlemania. Even before that, even when it was obvious the WWE did not want to develop Daniel Bryan for a proper push, they were teasing that friction between Triple H and Orton. That story obviously would have been developed further when Batista entered the picture. The fans going crazy for Daniel Bryan killed that story. Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista ended up on the same page. Ever since then, it doesn't feel like Randy Orton has had much momentum.

What has he been doing lately? He had that feud against Roman Reigns, but that was obviously about putting Reigns over. He now seems to be just another henchman for The Authority. The tension between him and Triple H is gone. He had some tension with Kane a few weeks ago, but nothing came of that. That tension last year made Orton look weak. But he has even less creative focus on him now. He has no real creative investment. Is he supposed to be the #2 guy in the company? They are not pushing him like it.

Does he deserve better? What else can they do with him during this time where they are trying to make stars to fill the void from losing certain top guys this year? I figured he would be one of the guys to eventually face Brock Lesnar for the title. Not necessarily now, but in December or January. John Cena has been taking up Lesnar's time. The only targets for Orton right now are John Cena and Dean Ambrose. How many times has he faced those two this year alone? Would it be better if you broke Orton away from The Authority? I think it would open up more possibilities for him and his character would shine better away from the group. If the WWE wants another member in the group so badly, toss Miz in there. His Hollywood gimmick can only last so long. Turn him corporate. Randy Orton was built to be a star for the WWE, but if they do not use him right, he cannot help them.

What Do You Do With Bray Wyatt Now?

Ever since he debuted, Bray Wyatt has been featured pretty consistently at PPVs. He didn't have a match at last year's Survivor Series, but his lackeys did. At this year's Night of Champions, neither he nor his guys had a match. And he still seems lost without anything meaningful to do.

Ever since his feud with Cena ended, you can make the argument that they really haven't had anything meaningful for Bray to do. He was in a ladder match at Money in the Bank, but that was really just as an extra body. How about that epic feud against Chris Jericho? If they had not brought back Jericho for that feud, Bray Wyatt probably would have been lost in the shuffle earlier than he ended up. Not surprisingly, Jericho put Wyatt over. And the WWE has no way to follow up. It kind of makes that feud with Jericho seem even more like filler. Bray Wyatt has beaten all these top stars. He has all this credibility. He has all this momentum. And he has nothing to do with it.

Should Bray Wyatt be treated as a priority? I am not saying he should be pushed as a main-eventer right now, but you have room in the midcard to push some interesting characters and develop good feuds. Moreover, the WWE has lost some guys they might have been interested in pushing recently. Aside from Daniel Bryan, you have Roman Reigns getting injured and both Rob Van Dam and Chris Jericho leaving again. Problem is, all these guys are faces. If you wanted to talk about whom they could push to full the void from losing those guys, you would probably have to list faces. They could turn The Wyatts face, but is now the time for that? I think you can do more with them as heels. And I do think they are good enough to deserve to be featured in some kind of storyline.

What do you do with them? You had Rupert and Murdoch feuding against Big Show and Mark Henry in a pointless rivalry. While that was going on, Mark Henry also had issues with Rusev. Mark Henry losing to Rusev has left him a broken man. You also had some signs that Big Show might feud with Bray Wyatt. Let's combine this all. Mark Henry is broken. Bray Wyatt comes in an gets him to join his side. Enter Big Show to save his tag partner. What does that leave Rusev to do? Forget about that for a moment. This is just about what to do with Wyatt. All of a sudden, things tie together a little better. Mark Henry and Big Show's feud against The Wyatts does not look as pointless. You transition what happened with Mark Henry in his feud with Rusev into another angle with another heel. Big Show now has a more creative reason to feud against these guys. I am not implying at all that this was the plan all along, but I think it is a plan that can make the WWE look more clever than they may really be. And this can culminate in Big Show and Mark Henry facing all three members of The Wyatts. The WWE featured some 3-on-1 handicap matches last year, so 3-on-2 should not be so unbelievable, especially when the guys that seem to have the numbers disadvantage are Big Show and Mark Henry.

They really should do more with Bray Wyatt from a creative standpoint. Some fans complain that The Wyatts are booked badly. What exactly do they mean by that? They don't win matches or just win against jobbers? Bray Wyatt has won some big matches. His two guys looked like legitimate contenders for the tag titles a while ago. The issue isn't wins and losses. It is more about the storylines than how they are actually booked. Bray Wyatt winning matches means nothing if you are not pushing him in an interesting manner. He'll get a cheap pop from mentioning what town he's in and his entrance has become a fad. But when it comes to how he is actually being pushed, they can be better creatively with him.

They Win Titles, They Lose Titles, And They Win Back Titles

There was a time when I was very good at remembering all the titles any wrestler currently on the roster had held. I could list out the title lineage for any of the titles from the time I started watching regularly in 1998. I could remember years worth of information. These days, I can't do it anymore. It's a lot to remember. 16 years. It also doesn't help that I just don't care about pro wrestling as much anymore. To top it all off, it is kind of hard to keep track when titles are going back and forth so often.

I couldn't think of any good reason why Miz should win the Intercontinental title at Night of Champions. He won it. Okay. Not the first time the WWE booked a match differently than I predicted they would. Next night on Raw, Dolph Ziggler won the title back. That was annoying. What's the point? To let people see Miz and his understudy both come out holding titles? Funny moment, sure, but it seems like pointless booking beyond that. Is that the closest Sandow will get to a title reign? Could you imagine Miz one day beating Chris Jericho's record for most Intercontinental Championship reigns? If they keep handing Miz 1-day reigns, it could happen before he retires.

AJ Lee. Paige. AJ Lee. Paige. AJ Lee. Those are the Diva's Championship holders this year. That is not how you book a diva centerpiece. That is just bad. You have other women to push. And the development between these title changes has not been that great. I didn't feel Paige should have won it at Summerslam. She did. After that, I didn't think AJ Lee should win it back so quickly at Night of Champions. It should either go to Nikki Bella to make her feud with her sister mean more or keep it on Paige. They give it back to AJ Lee.

You might say that 2008 was worse than 2014 has been. The Women's Championship went from Beth Phoenix to Mickie James, then back to Beth. That's all. Keep in mind that Candice Michelle was the centerpiece at this time. She was injured, got injured again soon after her first return, and flopped after returning again. Had that not happened, she would have regained the title that year from Beth Phoenix. Also keep in mind that Mickie James was the only face credible jobber on Raw. They really didn't have any other options. These days, the brand split is dead, the WWE has lowered their standards on whom they will push as credible jobbers, and even ignoring all that, there is no reason to shoot the title back and forth like this. It is a dark age, and you can expect weird booking that doesn't look too respectable during these times, but I don't think you need to shoot the title around between Paige and AJ. Some stability in the title scene would be nice.

It would be better if the storyline between the two was better. They were supposed to have this "frenemies" thing going. I never bought that. It was obviously not something they were going for from the start. Paige debuts to show some respect to AJ. AJ was clearly heelish towards her. Title change happens. When AJ came back and won the title back, I never really bought AJ Lee wanted to be friends. She wanted her title back. And it is hard to take her seriously with her psycho gimmick. Is she being genuine or playing mind games to get her way? The two were then pushed like they were on the same side, but you could feel a heel turn coming for Paige. And it happened. After that, you had Paige skipping around and all that. Paige got the title back at Summerslam. AJ turned the tables on Paige a bit. I don't see any of this as a real "frenemies" thing. They were just playing mind games. Paige was mocking AJ. You go back to that Trish/Mickie storyline. Mickie James dressing like Trish Stratus made sense because she wanted to be like Trish in that storyline. Trish dressing like Mickie made sense because she turned the tables to play mind games with Mickie. They eventually went back to their own looks as the story continued. There just came a point where some of the things they were doing in this Paige/AJ storyline just did not make sense anymore. I think it came after The Bellas were inserted. Around there, the storyline between Paige and AJ just stopped really being developed. It just sat one place and they were playing with each other, including using each other's moves. That is where you can sell a "frenemies" story, but it really was not developed well to that point. You should be at a point where Paige and AJ are clearly feuding without still teasing that they are on the same side.

They aired a great Paige promo at Night of Champions. Not only was it put together well and Paige did a great job, but what that would have meant for that storyline would have been so much. Paige was clearly a heel in that promo. She was mocking AJ and Nikki. This promo should have been done on a Raw or Smackdown at least a week prior to the PPV. After that, which is essentially the turning point that gives this feud the emotion it should have, you can build up to AJ overcoming this heel that betrayed her. They aired the promo, then had AJ win the title just like that. No proper development. It doesn't seem Paige will be skipping anymore, but I doubt the WWE will let her follow up on the great character she displayed in that promo.

I think things would be better if AJ Lee was pushed back in the periphery. Some people sometimes say that a certain wrestler is at his best when he is chasing after the title, not while he is holding it. It is exciting to see whether or not they will finally get it. After they get it, some fans might lose interest. This kind of thing has been said before about Randy Orton. He might have even said it about himself in an interview. He likes chasing after the title. I vaguely remember that. Don't hold me to it. How about with AJ Lee? Is she at her best chasing after the title or holding it? The chase to her first title reign was an extension of her periphery angle at the time. Big E played a role in it. How good would that feud development between AJ and Kaitlyn have been without that? The chase to her second title reign was nonexistent. She won it back the very night she came back. And the road to her third? It got overshadowed by The Bellas for a while. It was not properly developed. The way it was handled, speaking for myself, she should not have gotten it back so fast. How about when she is holding the title? Her first title reign was long, but it did not feature good feud development. They were just going through the motions with her. They ran through the entire division. Her second title reign only featured her feuding against one person. I don't think it was developed well to have her lose it that quickly. She is now on her third title reign. I don't blame AJ for bad feud and storyline development around the title scene, but I think she is at her best when she is in the periphery. That is what got her over. That is where there is still great potential to feature her well. She's over, but I don't think she is maintaining the connection she had back in 2012. And I doubt the WWE will just keep tossing titles on her until she has 70 by the end of next year, so returning her to the periphery will eventually happen, unless she leaves the company.

Going After The Seth Rollins Championship

I am not surprised that Cena would move on to a feud with The Authority after Lesnar. The way they set it up was not what I was expecting. Just yesterday, I talked about a face vs. face rivalry that I would have between Cena and Roman Reigns that would culminate with Reigns eliminating Cena to win the Royal Rumble. You seem to have a bit of a face vs. face rivalry between Cena and Dean Ambrose. What are they both after? A title? No. They both want to get their hands on Seth Rollins. Rollins has his obvious issues with Dean Ambrose. At Night of Champions, he cost John Cena the match.

I could imagine The Authority booking Cena vs. Ambrose with the winner getting Seth Rollins. I could also imagine Randy Orton, Kane & Seth interfering in that match. Beyond that, there really is no real tension between Cena and Ambrose. They both want the same target. This feud will most likely lead to some tag match at Hell in a Cell. If Roman Reigns was still around, he would most likely be in that picture.

Many fans viewed this feud between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose as the hottest thing going for months. You sometimes have John Cena inserted into angles that are hot or feuding against guys that are hot. Is this another example of that? One of the things people liked was these crazy brawls and Ambrose chasing after Rollins. Last night, Cena was in on that. What can you do? The WWE doing this should not be shocking.

I mentioned how the title match at Night of Champions ended. Seth Rollins interfered and tried to cash in on Lesnar. Cena stopped him. As you might imagine, a lot of fans complained about that match. Brock Lesnar looked weak. Some say that ending made no one look good. As I said last week, you were not going to get the same story you had at Summerslam. Just be thankful Brock retained. I am not surprised at how Cena looked. I am not surprised there was some kind of shady finish. I was not thinking it would be Rollins trying to cash in. I didn't think they would run an angle that might cause tension between Lesnar and The Authority. Not so soon. But that was the way they chose to do it. Overall, I am not going to complain. Lesnar could not look completely invincible forever. The way they handled the match was a convenient way to transition Cena to something else. At least he didn't win the title.

Roman Reigns Is Out

Roman Reigns had to have emergency surgery a few days ago. He obviously could not compete at Night of Champions and will be out for a while. Dean Ambrose is back, so Seth Rollins still has something to do.

What impact will this have on the push Roman Reigns was getting? He was obviously being developed to be a top star. Some say the WWE plans to have him take the title off Brock Lesnar. How serious is that? Is it bad speculation on the part of dirtsheets? Is it one of those things the WWE might tell people but not be serious about actually doing? A few months ago, the talk was Cesaro feuding with Brock this year. The WWE never pushed him well enough to make me believe they were really serious about it. You might point out certain moments here and there, like Cesaro being in a Money in the Bank ladder match for the WWE title during his push alongside Heyman. Yeah, Bray Wyatt was also in that Money in the Bank ladder match. Call me when Bray is doing something that really matters again. Point is, I don't think Reigns was going in the path of Cesaro. They actually looked serious in grooming him to be a star. He was not there yet. He was still in the process of being built. I am sure they will still push him well when he does return. There is a lack of fresh stars right now.

Let me talk about a feud idea for John Cena and Roman Reigns. There were a few feud ideas I had for Cena away from the title scene that I wanted to elaborate on, but I wanted to see if the WWE would put the title back on him last night first. Have Cena and Reigns feud. This will be a non-title feud. Obviously, it will also be face vs. face. Cena has been in this kind of feud before. He once feuded with face Batista in a non-title feud. His feud with The Rock started out like that. No need to turn either guy heel. Start a rivalry by having Reigns call Cena out on his inability to get the title back from Lesnar. But don't actually turn Reigns. Have them still be on the same side. Have them team together to face heel teams. Have Reigns refuse to tag in Cena and pick up the win himself. Have Cena return the favor the following week. Have them save each other from heel attacks. They can exchange blows here and there, but don't turn Reigns heel. And have this feud in December. It builds up to a PPV match where both men look good, Reigns comes close, and Cena wins in the end. Have them shake hands at the end. The show of respect is always a good way to keep the two performers faces. And have the feud linger after that, which often happens heading into the Royal Rumble. The Royal Rumble match comes down to Reigns and Cena. Reigns eliminates Cena to win. He gets some payback on Cena and gets his title shot at Wrestlemania. Why do I like this idea? It keeps Cena out of the title picture and gives Reigns a feud that can really help his credibility. He pushed Cena to the limit, came up short, and bounced back to eliminate Cena from the Royal Rumble to earn a title shot at Wrestlemania.

Night Of Champions 2014: Previewing The WWE Championship Match

Prior to this week, I planned to start the preview of the Night of Champions main event by going over all the inconsistency the storyline between John Cena and Brock Lesnar has had since Summerslam. What they did this week will provide me with enough to talk about. Paul Heyman comes out to cut a promo. John Cena comes out to demand Brock Lesnar. Lesnar isn't there yet. Cena plans to hold Heyman hostage until Lesnar does arrive. And the deadline he gives? Until the end of the show? No. He wants Lesnar in about 80 minutes, give or take 5 or 10. Halftime. Of course, the segment ended up happening a little bit later. Lesnar did show and the two brawled.

What was the WWE doing? They were pretty blatant. They wanted that segment to happen during halftime of the NFL game that night. That is when they would face the least competition during the game. That is why they stalled a little bit longer than Cena had said in his promo. Indeed, during halftime of the game, that is when the segment happened. On the final Raw before Night of Champions, your main-event segment is between Rusev and Mark Henry, a non-title feud, while the feud for the WWE Championship is placed below that for the sake of saving it from NFL competition.

What do I think about this? I find it stupid. It was cowardly. This feud between John Cena and Brock Lesnar is the best feud you have going. That is to say, it is supposed to be the best feud you have going. You have your centerpiece and an A+ part-timer that has been having a monster year going at it. If there is any feud they should have faith in drawing for them, it should be this one. And what do they do? They protect it. They don't send it out there at the time it would make sense to send it out there. They don't put their best foot forward.

Don't get me wrong, the segment probably would still have gotten destroyed. Ratings were very bad for Raw. No hour's average saw over 4 million viewers. The second hour did see the highest of the three hours. Huge drop in the 3rd hour. If the WWE did put Cena/Lesnar in the end of the show, at a time when the football game that night was getting good, what would ratings have looked like? Can never know for sure, but the act of not putting it there just shows a lack of confidence. If they can't have that kind of confidence in this feud featuring those guys, I don't feel confident in the WWE to make good decisions right now. You have probably already seen enough to draw that conclusion a long time ago. Football season just started. This was the second week. As the season goes on, games will count a lot more and teams with a larger fanbase will be going at it. The WWE can definitely be in for worse than they got this week. And they didn't even handle that show in a confident manner. How much worse could it get?

Onto the actual preview for the match. Two things to talk about. One is obviously who wins and whether that's the end of the feud. First, let me talk about the story of the match. You saw an obvious story at Summerslam. The dominance of Brock Lesnar and Cena taking the beating of his life. Some people say that the WWE must tell that same story again or it ruins Lesnar. Some people just want to see that again because they want to see Cena get destroyed. I don't think they can tell that same story again. I don't think they will tell that same story again. They have already sold that Cena is more focused now. He fought back against Lesnar on Raw and got the better of him before being separated. This will be more competitive than the match at Summerslam. You can picture Cena coming very close to getting it done, then Brock pulling it out in the end. If they had ran this story in a manner in which Cena was really crazy about proving he could do to Lesnar what Lesnar did to him, I could picture Cena getting disqualified for going too far in his match. Let him refuse to stop beating down Lesnar or snap and use a weapon. I think you can sell that without turning him heel. Of course, they have not developed the story in that direction and the direction they have developed it might make it look like Cena is turning heel just because he uses a weapon. Not the likely story here. How about Cena beats down Lesnar so much, Lesnar walks away from the match and gets counted out? Cena finds a way to get his arm raised, but Lesnar is still WWE Champion. Again, I don't feel they have developed this match with that kind of story. I would only expect a more competitive match.

Who wins? I would say Lesnar, but the WWE has developed this feud in a way where it seems more about Cena than Lesnar. Will he overcome? And there is still the whole issue of Lesnar being a part-timer. Will the WWE think that they need a full-time WWE Champion to draw for them? I still think Lesnar will retain. He should. There are still a few fresh challengers for him. He can feud against both heels and faces. But will the feud continue between Cena and Lesnar? Why should it? Hell in a Cell is coming up. What better way to end a heated feud than inside that structure? Both guys have been in Hell in a Cell matches. It could be good. But there is no need to drag this feud on. Let a fresh challenger step up.

Let me bring up my current favorite concept, the wildcat centerpiece. Before Lesnar even won the title, I imagined him winning it and getting a good run at the top, even if he wouldn't be there every week. Depush Cena. Let the hype of the unstoppable Brock Lesnar settle in on the main event. It hasn't really worked out like I had hoped. Lesnar would have been a wildcat centerpiece, even though I did not have that term in mind back then. His character has so much hype and dominance around it, I think he could bring a fresh change if pushed right. How can you push a guy that's not there every week? Remember when The Undertaker got injured a few years ago and they still ran a storyline about Kane taking him out? That was an interesting way to do things. How about those times Cena was out with an injury and they still developed title feuds for him? They did that just last year when Alberto Del Rio was World Champion. If they could make Cena look so important when he is not there, they could do that with Lesnar. I don't think they are doing a good job of that. Cena could be feuding with Seth Rollins, or some other heel The Authority puts against him, while Lesnar and his challenger get the main spotlight. Can anyone conquer The Beast? And if you hype Lesnar right and develop feuds right, that might increase his potential to draw when he does show up. When he's not there, you are creating fresh hype around something other than Cena's stale character. This is how you combat Monday Night Football with a confident strategy.

Night Of Champions 2014: Previewing The Non-title Matches

Did they really end Raw with Mark Henry and Rusev? Wow! It must be football season! I know very well this was not done because this feud is so important to the WWE. The WWE wanted the Cena/Brock segment, the segment that was the most important on that show, to occur during the halftime of the NFL game on Monday. Cena pretty much spelled it out in his opening promo. I'll talk more about that on Friday. Let me just focus on Mark Henry and Rusev right now. I didn't feel this feud would be as good as the one between Rusev and Jack Swagger, but it is better than I expected. I still wouldn't say it has the same feel as seeing Swagger turn face and it working, but it is a good feud with some good segments. I am not a United States patriot, but I do like these recent feuds. How many more can they possibly come up with? And can they keep them fresh? Mark Henry has all the momentum and I don't think they are developing Rusev to put him over. Rusev wins this match. And I would expect this feud to continue.

Chris Jericho faces Randy Orton. Why? I don't know. I figured they would go with this match. You can spend hours trying to explain the storyline reason for this feud to me. I don't care. This is obvious filler. Both men had feuds that were ending in the weeks before Night of Champions, leaving them with nothing to do. It is a rushed feud, if you can even really consider this a feud. How will the WWE write Jericho off? Punt to the head? Have Christian do something to Jericho? I am actually more interested in how they write Jericho off than in which guy wins the match. The outcome will really be meaningless. Jericho doesn't need to be put over, especially if he is leaving. Orton doesn't seem to be doing anything important right now. I can see Jericho winning and Orton taking him out out of frustration. I'll go with that. Jericho wins.

Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins go at it. I feel like I have seen this match before. Very recently. Might have even been on Raw. Why would you do that? Again, I am not talking about a storyline reason. It is just this booking is stupid. Reigns won that round. He did it cleanly. You would expect Seth to win at Night of Champions. Why hand Reigns two straight wins against another guy you want to build to be a star? And because you had that clean finish, I would expect something different at the PPV. Ambrose returns? Kane does something? That match on Raw has to lead to something more at Night of Champions.

Wildcat Centerpiece In The Men's Division

I talked about how a "wildcat" centerpiece would work in the diva division yesterday. Today belongs to the men's division. Why might this be appealing? You have had a centerpiece for almost a decade now that has trouble properly connecting with the fans. Instead of the WWE addressing the problem in a manner to try to please their fans and run an efficient product, they have taken advantage of that hate John Cena gets for the sake of storylines, which often fail to do too much. On the other side of that, you have some guys that the fans want to see get pushed that often get buried or used to put over Cena, then get buried. If the WWE utilized some sort of wildcat strategy, that might give Cena more of a rest, have a variety of other guys pushed well, and create storylines and feuds that can really excite the fans. The WWE does rest John Cena from the title scene and main-event scene at times, but not enough to please fans. So more must be done.

Wildcat. Bray Wyatt. He was the first guy that came to mind when I thought about talking about this. Does he have a "wildcat" gimmick? Deranged cult leader? Yeah, I think that counts. He had a shot at winning the World title a few months ago. I remember thinking back then how interesting a title reign with him would have been. Don't just let him have the title, but push him as the top guy for a few months. Don't just use him as a jobber to the centerpiece, but develop a few successful title defenses for him against other guys. I felt like TNA would be more likely to do that kind of thing, not the WWE. With a creepy guy like that as the top star for a while, things would surely be shaken up.

A lot of fans say the WWE botched the Nexus angle a few years ago. They really didn't. They weren't trying to create stars out of all those guys. It was a storyline designed to put over Cena. It did that. They then moved on, slowly letting the air out of the angle. But the WWE could have done better. Wade Barrett could have legitimately won the WWE title back then. But what would the WWE likely have done? Probably have him drop it to Cena. Let's say they gave Barrett the title and actually let him run with it. Have him defend against both faces and heels, since his group was attacking both sides. Keep Cena away from Barrett, at least for a while. Have Cena feud with the other members of the group. How much better would that storyline have been if the leader of these rookie rebels was pushed as top guy in the company for a while? That would be a wildcat centerpiece. And I think a lot of fans unhappy with how the WWE handled the storyline would be more content with this.

CM Punk held the WWE Championship for over a year. For most of that time, however, he was still being overshadowed by John Cena. CM Punk was never the centerpiece. Could they have done a better job with him? I think so. They could have pushed him as the wildcat centerpiece. You have a controversial figure that drops pipe bombs and stands up to those trying to maintain the status quo so many fans are sick of. Unlike the previous two examples I gave, you could have CM Punk as wildcat centerpiece without having him be heel. Fans loved him and what he was doing could work well as a face. He should have been the guy that put John Laurinaitis out of business. And aside from that, I am sure there are other ways to keep his anti-establishment character going for a few more months in the main spotlight. John Cena doing these things is not fresh. Besides, CM Punk could have brought more edge to these type of storylines.

Just to reiterate a main point, why is it important that the wildcat centerpiece have some type of wild gimmick? I talked about a deranged cult leader, a leader of a rebel group, and quite possibly the most controversial superstar the WWE has had this decade. You are not just replacing John Cena with a guy that is going to do exactly what he does in the main spotlight. You are replacing John Cena with a guy that can really shake things up. You look at Randy Orton. You can say they have pushed him in Cena's spot for a while over the years, but he doesn't really bring a change in the title feuds and the main-event scene like certain guys with unique characters could bring. The wildcat centerpiece is supposed to shake things up when he gets pushed in that position. That's why you bother doing it. Eliminate some of that staleness from too much Cena.

The Wildcat Centerpiece

I was watching the Jets game yesterday. They like to employ some wildcat plays. These are plays that involve a bit of trickery to confuse the defense. I have said before that the best plays a coach comes up with are often the ones that involve confusing the other team. The wildcat is where the regular quarterback is not the one receiving the ball from the center. It is usually the running back getting it or the backup quarterback, if he happens to be a good runner. He then has options. Run with it? Throw it? Hand it off? It gets defenses thinking about what might happen even more with this new guy in the quarterback position. It doesn't always work, but it sometimes comes in handy in situations where you just want to run it.

You know how much I like comparing football to wrestling. The centerpiece is like the quarterback. Watching that game yesterday, I started to think how you might have some kind of "wildcat" centerpiece. This is not like an interim centerpiece. An interim centerpiece is getting a filler push. She is pushed in place of the true centerpiece when the true centerpiece gets injured, is getting angles where she does not need to be near the title, and so on. The interim centerpiece is a credible jobber. They are not pushed to be over, are usually not very over, and usually do not have an interesting gimmick or are not pushed too interestingly during the filler push. That is not what I am thinking of at all. I am thinking of pushing a woman as centerpiece for a while that you actually want to be over. This would obviously be a periphery diva. It would be a top-tier periphery diva. I am not talking eye-candy periphery divas, especially those that cannot wrestle well. I am talking those periphery divas that know how to wrestle, which would help keep matches respectable in terms of wrestling quality. You might see this kind of thing during dark ages when no centerpiece is around, but why not do it by design even when a centerpiece is there? And you know how you really make it a "wildcat" centerpiece? Have this diva have a wild or unique gimmick.

Why would you want to do this kind of thing? For one thing, the women the WWE has pushed as centerpiece don't tend to have fancy gimmicks. They have these hot, glamorous characters. Being sexy connects them with many men. Being glamorous can help them connect with many women. As they become solid wrestlers, they get those wrestling fans on their side. After that, the WWE just hypes them up as something great. Sable didn't have an over-the-top, unique gimmick. Trish didn't. She wore that mask as part of an injury angle when she was heel, but I really don't consider that a gimmick. Candice Michelle didn't. Maryse was sexy and French, but no real wild gimmick. Eve Torres was showing some character as a heel centerpiece, but not really a unique gimmick. Kelly Kelly was generic. Michelle McCool did have a wild gimmick, but that was because she was failing to get over without a gimmick. She also failed even with a gimmick. And she was the centerpiece, not a wildcat centerpiece. And that was just an annoying era in the diva division. They were not featuring any other women properly as stars. It was all LayCool and their failure to properly get over with that hard push. If they had a wildcat centerpiece back then, it might have freshened things up. And that is my whole point. Having a wildcat centerpiece can add more flavor to the division, especially the title scene. While that woman is doing that, have the true centerpiece get storylines in the men's division, feud with women in non-title matters, or even have angles with other eye-candy divas. She does not have to lose her momentum.

Have you ever had a wildcat centerpiece? Not really. The WWE has never designed it that way. Lita's first title reign came during the first dark age and wasn't that long. Her next two title reigns all involved Trish Stratus, the centerpiece. For this wildcat centerpiece treatment, you are going to keep the true centerpiece away. Let another star have the legitimate spotlight. And Lita's final title reign was for her retirement angle. Chyna's one run with the title came off a Playboy push. It also came during the dark age.

How about AJ Lee? I think she would be a great wildcat centerpiece. She has definitely not been pushed as the true centerpiece. Her first title reign did not feature the kind of feud development a centerpiece gets. She has been getting that kind of development recently to some degree, but it has recently been overshadowed by The Bellas. AJ Lee has the kind of gimmick I am thinking of for a wildcat centerpiece. She's, well, wild! But I feel that gimmick can be a nuisance if she was the centerpiece. For one thing, can the writers consistently come up with good storylines for her? For another thing, most of her opponents might either be overshadowed by her gimmick or just be blatant supporting cast for her benefit. Paige is copying AJ Lee. That feud is really about AJ Lee. I am not getting the vibe that it will help Paige get over or that they will continue to push her well. Go back to Michelle McCool and that "mean girls" gimmick. The whole division was pretty much at her mercy. Everyone LayCool feuded with just became victims for them to bully to try to either get booed for being heels or cheered for trying to be entertaining. The title didn't even matter that much, except when it was used to sell McCool making history. Even though AJ Lee is more charismatic than Michelle McCool and more over, I feel she can be just as overbearing. The fact that I find her creepy doesn't help. Not as creepy as Bo Dallas, but she can be too much.

But the thought of how AJ Lee can work as a wildcat centerpiece does warm me up to her a little more. Let's say there was a centerpiece. Let's say Eve Torres never left. After Eve had won 2 or 3 title reigns during her centerpiece run (to go with the 2 she had won before being centerpiece), rotate her out for a little. No need to rush her to 7 or 8. Put her back in an authority figure angle. What do you do while you rest her? Bring in your wildcat centerpiece. And this won't be just a filler reign, like you get with interim centerpieces. Let AJ's crazy gimmick shine. Give her a lengthy title reign, two short ones, or however you want to work it. And when you are ready to push Eve in the title scene again, she will be fresh. Fans can't complain of one diva hogging the spotlight or boring storylines. You might get your dry, typical diva title feuds with Eve, but your wildcat centerpiece will add more flavor. Aside from keeping the performers fresh, it also keeps the writers fresh. They won't have to come up with storyline after storyline for just one woman around the title, especially a woman that is pretty generic like most centerpieces are in the diva division. It might be more fun for them to write up storylines for a diva with a unique gimmick, like AJ Lee.

Does it have to be a psycho gimmick? Not necessarily. Just have some kind of gimmick that can really make for some interesting diva storylines and that you were keeping fresh in the periphery. Remember when I was talking about Kharma having some kind of bodyguard role? You can transition that into pushing her as wildcat centerpiece. How about Gail Kim being pushed as a ninja-like enforcer? Transition that into the wildcat. What's the importance of having some kind of unique gimmick at all? Because this isn't just about resting the centerpiece from the title scene and getting titles to your other stars. This is about featuring characters that can offer different storylines in the title scene without the centerpiece needing to be involved or possibly even overshadowing it.

Assuming AJ stays, can the WWE run this kind of women's division with her and The Bellas. I doubt they will try. This whole idea I gave isn't just about coming up with a game plan to be creative with your divas, but also do things efficiently. The WWE is just messy right now. You have never really had top-tier periphery divas get a fair shot in the title spotlight unless there was no centerpiece around. Going by what the WWE has a history of doing and their recent actions in the diva division, I don't think they are interested in running an efficient, productive women's division.

Since I am on the topic of the diva division, let me do a quick preview of the title match at Night of Champions. Paige defends against AJ Lee and Nikki Bella. Who wins? This match is going to come down to how they want to work things with The Bellas. They just tossed Nikki into this match. That could be a clear sign Nikki wins. Why toss her in if she won't win? Just to feature The Bellas at the PPV? You could have had some in-ring segment involving them. You have had those kind of segments on PPVs before. Let them talk and catfight. I could also imagine Brie costing Nikki the match. If Nikki gets taken out of the equation, leaving it just between AJ and Paige, I would say Paige retains. They need to stop tossing the title around. Overall, I am thinking Nikki wins and her feud with Brie becomes even more dramatic with the title involved.

Night Of Champions 2014: Previewing The Tag Titles Match

Aside from the Diva's Championship match, none of the title matches at Night of Champions features multiple challengers going for the title. I think that is disappointing. You could make some of these title feuds and matches seem more interesting by making it look like a number of challengers stand a chance to win a title. The tag title feud heading into Night of Champions easily could have led up to a match with multiple challengers. I thought it would. Wrong about that. Instead, it is just between The Usos and The Rhodes.

Let me start by talking about some of these other teams. Specifically, how about Big Show & Mark Henry and The Wyatts? That is still going on. Why? This is the most annoying thing for me since Miz vs. Fandango last year. It seems pointless. Mark Henry has something else going for him. Big Show could easily have something else going for him. Porcupine Pete and Aardvark Dan don't need a feud. They can just be an extension of whatever Bray Wyatt is doing. Have Wyatt feud with Big Show. And if you are going to feature these two teams so regularly, why not put them into the tag title feud? Because Mark Henry would not be able to feud with Rusev? I already brought up the depth issue right now, but I am sure they could have thought of another angle for Rusev.

The Rhodes get the title shot. I am not surprised they would get a title shot. I just figured it would be The Wyatts winning the titles and feuding against The Rhodes. You would have had two eccentric tag teams feuding with each other. Could have been pretty good. Instead, The Rhodes turned heel to feud with The Usos. I don't think this feud is as entertaining as you could have had with a multi-team feud or a feud between just The Wyatts and The Rhodes. When Cody got this new gimmick, he was fresh back then. Now, some of the freshness has faded. The WWE waited too long to push him and Goldust.

Who wins? For a while now, the WWE has been pretty good in handing the tag titles off to teams that had good momentum. That is not The Rhodes. Not now. And yet, The Usos have held the titles for a long time now. Tough one. I don't feel either team should be holding it. It just feels like a filler period right now. Give it to The Rhodes.

Night Of Champions 2014: Previewing The Intercontinental Championship And United States Championship Matches

It wouldn't be Night of Champions without every title being on the line. I've talked a lot about Cena. I've talked about The Bellas being inserted into the AJ/Paige feud. I have talked a little about what's going on in the tag division. I should say more about the other two title matches.

Miz gets his rematch against Dolph Ziggler for the Intercontinental Championship. I have already said that I would have had Ziggler win the title at this PPV, not Summerslam. No point repeating that. The WWE continues to develop Miz's Hollywood gimmick. I am not a fan of it, but it provides an interesting character. It also gives Sandow something to do now. The actual feud between Ziggler and Miz hasn't exactly been amazing, but it is better than you usually get in the midcard. Who wins? Ziggler just won the title. I see no good reason to shoot it back to The Miz.

The United States Championship feud features quite possibly the two most boring guys currently being pushed in the WWE. I am not denying that Sheamus and Cesaro can go in the ring, but they aren't exactly pushed with interesting characters right now. I am actually knocking how they are being pushed, not them. Cesaro looked so much better a few months ago. And I believe he had a shot to win the United States title back then. The WWE didn't pull the trigger then. I wouldn't be surprised if they did now. What more can Sheamus do with the title? You might as well give it to Cesaro and let him have a mediocre run with it. After all his momentum has been killed, how many fans will really care about him getting the title? Smarks will care. If there are a lot of them at Night of Champions, Cesaro beating Sheamus might be the closest thing to a "feel good" moment you get in terms of a title change.

Paul Heyman Tries To Turn Cena Heel

John Cena has been getting patchwork treatment ever since Summerslam. I used that word before when talking about AJ Lee. When it comes to her character and storylines, she is made up of patches from divas of the past, and even some men. The WWE sticking with one character for her would be nice, as well as some originality. How does this relate to Cena? Look at how they have been developing his storyline since Summerslam. First, he starts off destroying Bray Wyatt in a manner similar to what Brock Lesnar did to him. After that, you have The Authority doubting him and selling this idea that he will need to prove himself. This week, Paul Heyman tried to turn him heel. Exactly what is the storyline they are trying to sell with John Cena heading into Night of Champions? They have just been going in different directions every week now. This feud is just made up of patches of different ideas. They have not stuck with one idea. This kind of inconsistency is why I said that the feud with The Bellas is better than the top storylines you have going on right now. Thankfully, Night of Champions is almost here. They should be able to stick with a good direction with Brock Lesnar returning.

Paul Heyman tried to turn John Cena heel. This should sound familiar. There are a few angles that the WWE just loves recycling with John Cena. He rises above hate. He overcomes the odds. He can endure hell and bounce back. They also love using children in his angles sometimes. And they love putting over his work ethic. You have seen patches of some of these things during the patchwork job they have done with Cena in recent weeks. Kane failed to turn Cena heel. Bray Wyatt failed. Paul Heyman will likely fail. You can say Cena already overcame Heyman's attempt on Raw last night, but if Brock Lesnar should defeat John Cena again, would that lead to John Cena finally giving in? I doubt it. Aside from setting up next week, I just found that whole segment useless. All it did was create a situation where John Cena once again showed he would not turn. That is a stale idea. It's no good anymore.

I have actually given John Cena turning heel some thought recently. Let me talk a little more about it. On the one hand, it feels like something that will never happen. On the other hand, it feels like something that will eventually happen, assuming Cena does not retire soon. A heel turn would cause buzz. It is something you might picture the WWE using as a last resort. If the product is just too stale and fans are leaving, you will see Cena turn heel.

I wonder what good that heel turn would really do. Yes, it would create buzz. CM Punk's pipe bomb also caused buzz. What didn't it do? How about draw? Ratings and PPV buys remained pretty much the same they were around that time. There was no huge, steady increase. And of course, the status quo did not really change. In the minds of many, a Cena heel turn would be a change in the status quo. I don't really see it as that. If he is still pushed as the centerpiece, he is still the top guy. Does his heel turn fix all the other problems, including a weak midcard? His heel turn might generate buzz to get a ratings boost for the show after he turns, and maybe a few shows after that, but what happens as time goes by? If the quality of the show is still the same, ratings will continue to be mediocre. John Cena will continue to be the performer he is. What will change is the role he is performing. I don't think John Cena is that great of a draw. If you turn him heel, which many fans might say will get the kids turned off him, what audience will he really be drawing in? Angry guys on the Internet that will tune in even if he doesn't turn? Yeah, there is no draw there.

Of course, a lot of it depends on what kind of heel Cena is. Rapper heel? Corporate heel? How about an angry heel? Rapper Cena might be entertaining. Corporate Cena would definitely cause some buzz. Angry Cena? That is the kind of heel I feel a lot of these storylines about him turning would naturally lead to. You have guys pointing out how much fans hate Cena. What kind of character should that bring out of Cena? He just starts rapping? No, I don't think so. He gets so pissed off that he joins The Authority? I think there would have to be more of a storyline reason for that. They want Cena to crack and let the fans get on his nerves. That would lead to an angry Cena that is always blaming the fans and complaining. It would still be a serious character. And I don't think it would be a character that could either entertain or cause buzz. If he ever does turn heel, it would have to be off a better storyline than what they have attempted in recent years.

Everything Tossed Into One Smackdown Ring

When I was reading the Smackdown spoilers last week, I took a few minutes to just stare at the main event they had made. I was trying to make sense of it. Okay, this guy is feuding with this guy. Those guys are feuding with those guys. Wait, isn't this guy also feuding with that other guy? Does that guy over there even have a feud? Where's Jinder Mahal? It was a little messy.

Let me fill in some names to make this picture clearer. The match was John Cena, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, Big Show, and Mark Henry vs. Seth Rollins, Kane, Bray Wyatt, and Wyatt's henchmen. John Cena is feuding against Brock Lesnar, which is an extension of his feud with The Authority, which makes the involvement of Seth and Kane make sense. Cena also obviously has his history with Bray Wyatt. Chris Jericho has been feuding with Bray Wyatt recently. Roman Reigns is involved with The Authority, specifically Randy Orton. Recent developments have him setting his sights on Seth Rollins, who was feuding with Dean Ambrose. Big Show and Mark Henry have been feuding with The Wyatts, specifically Harper and Rowan. Mark Henry also has a feud going on with Rusev. Does Kane really have anything specific for him? Not really.

Speaking for myself, all these feuds are bad. People say that the WWE usually stops trying when football season starts. That may be true, but not only was that Smackdown main event lazy booking, but these feuds all seem lacking. John Cena is feuding against a guy that is not even there every week. That's fine, but I am sure they could have developed things better with Cena in recent weeks. Those other guys in that match? That is almost all the top stars you have right now. Some of these feuds seem like they should have just ended already, like Jericho vs. Wyatt. There is no point in dragging that feud on much further. Big Show and Mark Henry vs. The Wyatts does not even feel like a feud. They call it a rivalry. I see it as a bunch of filler matches every week. The storyline for the feud between Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns just feels weak. Roman Reigns has not exactly been written to care too much about Seth betraying him and Dean Ambrose. He was supposed to be pissed at Randy Orton a few months ago. That soon turned into him caring more about becoming World Champion. It took some of the edge out of his feud with Orton when focus did turn to that. And where was he all those times Dean Ambrose was getting killed by Seth Rollins? Now he cares? Again, some of the edge has been lost there.

None of these feuds and storylines seem very good. I want to say that Brie vs. Nikki is better than any of the main feuds going on for the men. This is a feud that still has that edge to it. It is fresh. The storyline has been getting big development. I am not saying the performers in that storyline are amazing or that the type of storyline it is is my favorite. I am saying that the way it has been developed is better than anything going on with the top stars in the men's division. Those feuds for the men just seem stale or poorly developed.

What's more, it seems you might have some guys left with nothing to do for Night of Champions. Cena obviously has Brock. Seth and Reigns can feud against each other. Where does that leave Randy Orton? I wouldn't be surprised with leaving Kane off the card, but Orton? Have him feud with Jericho? I don't feel that feud. Don't care. Mark Henry has Rusev. Big Show? Wyatt also has nothing to do. Pair those two together? Once again, I don't feel that feud. These options are just not developed properly. What about Wyatt's henchmen? I feel they should have been involved in the title hunt for the tag titles. They might end up without a match. If this was Survivor Series coming up, you could just lump all these guys together for some kind of match that would make sense.

A few months ago, I gave the WWE credit for looking good. And this was after Wrestlemania. They had some great feuds going on and things felt fresh. This was without CM Punk. Even after Daniel Bryan needed surgery, things did not collapse right away. The WWE just could not remain consistent with that. They need to rotate around their main-eventers better. Don't just treat certain guys as jobbers to the stars or guys being developed to be stars. That can help them maintain some freshness.

TNA's Rotation

I don't really watch baseball that much. I watch if there is nothing else on and I'm bored. My cousin likes the Yankees, so I follow how they are doing to be able to talk about it with him. Who cares? I decided to make an analogy between baseball and TNA. Might be the only time I talk baseball.

You can say that the most important player on a baseball team is the pitcher. He doesn't actually score, but he is the centerpiece when it comes to limiting the other team from scoring. And teams in the MLB have multiple pitchers. They have to. You have multiple starting pitchers and multiple relief pitchers. This is something you don't really see in football and basketball. In those sports, you usually want your star quarterback and star players out there, unless it is a meaningless game. In baseball, a pitcher can end up throwing the ball a hundred times in one game before he gets relieved. No quarterback is going to throw the ball that much in one game. And quarterbacks don't play back-to-back nights like you have in baseball. You sometimes have a doubleheader, which is two games in one day. If one pitcher was responsible for all that, it would be murder on his arm. I probably couldn't throw one pitch without hurting myself. That is why you have this natural rotation in baseball.

I have said before that TNA likes to rotate around their stars. I once compared it to them being stuck in the preseason in football. This baseball analogy might be better. For one thing, the football analogy might imply that they are testing all this talent and trying to figure out whom to stick with, but they just can't make up their mind, which leads to them being stuck in the situation they are in. I am beginning to think this is how they want to do things. If that is the case, the baseball analogy might make more sense.

One thing to keep in mind, TNA weren't always the way they are now. They did have a different system. There was a time where Jeff Jarrett was pushed as their top guy. Some say he hogged the spotlight. He was like Triple H. He was the clear centerpiece. Over in their women's division, it had not yet really developed. Almost everything was in the periphery. It was an extension of issues in the men's division. For a while, Gail Kim was the clear top star. That system has changed.

TNA likes to rotate around their top stars. And it isn't an official, set rotation like you have in baseball, but it is a rotation. Lashley is having a run as top guy. Eric Young had a run. Magnus had a run. Bully Ray had a run. And a lot of guys that looked so awesome at one time then get rotated down back to the midcard. The same kind of thing happens in the KO division, although Gail Kim is starting to be pushed more like a true centerpiece than they have ever had before. Nevertheless, there is still a slight rotation there. You have had some women look so strong for a few months, then they get rotated out. You put that interest in them, then you take it away and rotate them out and someone else in.

It makes sense to do this kind of thing in baseball. One pitcher cannot handle all that work. Does it really make sense for TNA to be inconsistent like this? I know these wrestlers work hard and give their bodies to entertain, but it isn't like top stars have to wrestle on TV every week. Have them just do promos some nights. Have them on commentary. Have them in backstage segments. Have them brawl with whomever they are feuding. A lot of possibilities. It is obviously not about just physical freshness, since these guys still perform in the midcard. It is a matter of creative freshness. You don't want the top star being pushed getting stale. But are you really pulling the plug on him because he has gotten stale? I feel TNA often kills the momentum of someone for no good reason. It's not even that they are punishing anyone. This is just how they operate. And it creates inconsistency.

With this kind of system TNA runs, can you really have system guys and gals? Even if this system created a star, that star would get rotated back down, which would likely kill his momentum. If a person in this system treated like that is somehow still able to maintain a great connection with the fans, that person likely has the ability to succeed in most other systems. And I don't mean just connecting with wrestling fans or TNA's core fanbase. I mean connecting with fans across the board at a great level. I am talking A-tier overness. The only people that have that kind of overness are probably guys that became stars in other promotions prior to coming to TNA. In other words, this system has not really created any stars. I felt a guy like AJ Styles had that potential, but the system was just not good for him. Gail Kim looked so great during her first run in TNA, but I don't feel she is connecting with fans the same way. She is a great wrestler and helping to keep the division respectable, but in terms of her own overness, I don't think it is too high. If they pushed her differently, with better creative interest, it might be better. To put it simply, this system cannot properly create or feature stars, both for the men and the women.

Rusev Vs. Mark Henry

Now that the WWE is revisiting the feud between Rusev and Mark Henry, I'll talk about it more. Mark Henry still seems to be teaming with Big Show against The Wyatts, as well, but that's another issue. I doubt the WWE will completely drop Mark Henry vs. Rusev.

How will this feud compare to Rusev's previous feud with Jack Swagger? In my opinion, that was the best feud Rusev has had since debuting. That might not be saying much. Regardless, it was a good feud. Jack Swagger's gimmick made this feud natural. Swagger successfully turned face, which is something I think a lot of fans doubted could ever happen. There were some great segments. They put on some good matches. I would say it was one of those feuds that really benefited both sides, and neither guy has been tossed aside after it has ended. Could they have done a few things to make the feud better, like have an actual flag match at Summerslam? Yeah, but it was a great midcard feud.

I don't think this feud you have going on right now for Rusev will be as good. On paper, it looks good. You have two big brutes going at it. Mark Henry was an Olympian for the United States, so this feud can make sense. Mark Henry might also have more credibility than Jack Swagger. But a lot of people complain about matches that involve big men. They usually don't find them exciting. And I doubt the story they develop here will have the same feel that Rusev/Swagger had. As I said, Jack Swagger's gimmick was just perfect for a feud with Rusev. With the exception of bringing back Kurt Angle to feud with him, I cannot think of a more natural feud for Rusev. Will the fact that Mark Henry still seems to be working against The Wyatts also take away from his feud with Rusev? Depends on how long that lasts. There is potential to make this feud interesting, but I doubt it will work out.

Should Mark Henry be the man that beats Rusev? As of right now, I don't think he needs the win. I don't think he is likely to win. This seems to be just another feud designed to make Rusev look good. How many more feuds like that can they possibly develop before they put an end to him?

Let me talk about the situation with Michael Sam. If you don't know who he is, he is a football player. He is looking to be the first openly-gay player in the NFL. The team that drafted him cut him before the season started. It looked like no other team would want him, even as a member of the practice squad. As you saw on Raw, the WWE extended an invitation to have him come and talk. Since then, it looks like the Dallas Cowboys will add him to their practice squad. It does not look like Sam will come to the WWE. The WWE seems to have dropped the plan completely.

What can you say about this? Pretty stupid by the WWE. If they had already gotten the guy to appear on Raw, I can understand advertising it. They didn't get him to commit. All they did was advertise they were inviting him. And it looks like it will go nowhere. They just made themselves look foolish. It was all for the sake of publicity. What would Michael Sam really have said if he showed up? Most people are very professional in these situations. And I don't see why Sam would have any reason to be bitter and not professional. Players get cut before the season starts all the time. I doubt it was anything personal or anything against his lifestyle. I doubt the Rams tried to screw him. The WWE knows about screwing people. They were going to give him a live mic? And? What were they hoping would happen? An AW moment? It was just a bad idea. I hope they have fun with Jerry Springer.

The Bellas Trump Paige/AJ

For weeks now, some fans have been complaining that the drama involving The Bellas and Stephanie McMahon was getting more time and better attention than the title feud between AJ Lee and Paige. Other fans would say that it was good that there were two diva feuds going on. What do you say now? On Raw last night, they pretty much inserted The Bellas into the title picture. The drama between Nikki and Brie is now overshadowing AJ and Paige even more.

I sometimes like to compare things going on now in the diva division to situations from the past. The situation you have now reminded me of that time Victoria and Gail Kim were feuding over the Women's Championship. Gail Kim was finally getting pushed again. She had picked up some wins against Victoria. All of a sudden, Lita and Trish are in the match. Trish Stratus walks out with the title. This isn't as bad as The Great Khali winning a match between Daniel Bryan and Sheamus, but they pretty much overshadowed the original feud. You also have what was supposed to be Layla vs. Kaitlyn from a few years ago being won by Eve, but that was more understandable. Eve was involved in the story from the start and it really was her push.

In both those past situations in the diva division, you had a centerpiece trumping everything else. Neither Nikki nor Brie are being pushed as the centerpiece, yet, but recent developments make me believe even more that they may be preparing to go in that direction. They have not had a diva on Total Divas win the title yet. It really should just be a matter of time. But would a Bella holding the title be just for the benefit of creating material for Total Divas? Or will one of them actually fill that centerpiece void? I have said that Total Divas is like an elaborate PG-version of Playboy. From the time the golden age started, you never had Playboy divas win the title when they were getting their Playboy push. Candice won the title to be pushed as centerpiece, after already having done Playboy. Point is, some fans might say a title reign for The Bellas would just be for the sake of Total Divas, but it could be to start pushing a new centerpiece. Or it could be dark age shenanigans.

I didn't get to say much about the storyline between AJ and Paige and what they have been doing in recent weeks. It looks like whatever storyline they were having is going to be diluted now with The Bellas inserted. Let me still talk about that storyline. I really did not like it. It was turning even more into the type of storyline Mickie James and Trish Stratus had, just with poorer development. Paige did not debut as a big fan of AJ Lee. Paige debuted to show some respect to AJ. Those weeks AJ was gone, Paige never really showed any huge love for AJ. All of a sudden, Paige is skipping like AJ. I can chalk that up to playing mind games. Recently, you have had some lesbian undertones. How far can you get in PG? It is the kind of development you would have seen in Trish/Mickie, with Trish trying to play mind games with Mickie. And you have already had the two trade the title a few times. Whether AJ is leaving or not, it would only make sense for Paige to win the feud. Now with The Bellas involved, the story is different. To put it simply, the story they were pushing between Paige and AJ just did not have the same flow to it that the storyline between Mickie James and Trish Stratus had and just seemed like something they were tossing together.

Let me focus more on the characters these two women are portraying. I am not talking just about gimmick, but how they are portraying the gimmick. AJ Lee is a psycho. And she is creepy. That is one of the main reasons I am not as drawn to her as I was to Mickie James. Mickie James had this fun spirit to her. Even after they took the gimmick away, she still had that charisma. AJ isn't that fun psycho. She is a creepy psycho. I am not drawn to the things she is doing.

Paige is copying AJ. All it has really amounted to is her skipping. Aside from that, ever since she has turned heel, I have noticed she seems to try too hard to be sexy in some of her matches. She seems to be looking for approval. There really is no storyline reason for it. I liked her better when she was a face. Some reports say she was not engaging the crowd. If you pay attention to what she was doing, she actually was trying. Aside from her look, she is obviously not pushed as an anti-diva, but I don't think she needs to try the eye-candy diva route to get over. I would not be surprised if people backstage are telling her how to act. She just does not seem natural in what she was doing, although I think she does a good job skipping. But what will that do for her in getting her over? I don't think it will. The fans are not connecting with Paige. She is just imitating AJ Lee. And she is really not getting to show a character I think can really get her over. She needs to find her own groove and do it naturally.

Put it all together, that's why I don't like the storyline you had going on between AJ and Paige. The actual storyline didn't seem thought out properly, AJ's creepy character is not interesting me, and Paige's character just does not seem natural. Is it good that it is getting phased down? Will it be better with The Bellas inserted? Will The Great Khali walk out of Night of Champions with the Diva's Championship? Right now, I can't say. Let's see how things develop.

Kharma In The Periphery & System Guys

There would not have been many options for Kharma. If they had kept her, she would not have been pushed as the centerpiece, most likely would not have been pushed as a credible jobber, since she is just too intimidating and was being featured as dominant while there, and that would leave only featuring her as a periphery diva. If they had kept her, what kind of periphery diva could she have been?

She only had one match after debuting. That was taking part in the Royal Rumble. Two other women did that. That would be Chyna and Beth Phoenix. Beth Phoenix mixed it up with the men a little, but not enough to be considered a periphery diva. She got pushed mostly to put over the centerpieces and got some filler title reigns in between the WWE moving from centerpiece to centerpiece. She was a credible jobber. Chyna was a periphery diva. She was pushed as a star. She became famous for what she did in the men's division. Could Kharma have followed the path of Chyna? I have seen some people talk like Kharma would have had a chance to become the first woman to win the World's Heavyweight Championship. I don't know about that. Fact is, you don't see many matches between men and women in the PG era, so I doubt she really would have become a regular in the men's division in the same way Chyna was, without even bringing up the possibility of going further than Chyna did.

Just like I talked about Gail Kim being an enforcer, I think Kharma could have had some kind of enforcer/bodyguard role. Wouldn't be too different from Chyna early in her WWE career. Kharma could be an enforcer for both male superstars and divas. Imagine if Michelle McCool stayed and Kharma debuted as her new sidekick. Michelle McCool had Alicia Fox and Layla at her side for a while during her career, but how much did any of that help her get over? Kharma may not have helped her get over, but an intimidating bodyguard like that might have led to the fans viewing McCool differently. It would have been trying something new, if nothing else. And as Kharma connected with the fans through her own abilities, McCool would have gotten a rub from that. You would probably eventually have a time when the two split and have their feud, which typically happens. What do you do with Kharma then? Have her be the enforcer for someone else, possibly a man this time. You could keep this rolling for a while. This idea may sound stupid, but remember The Acolytes Protection Agency?  Create a gimmick like that for Kharma. She would be a one-woman APA. It could make for some interesting storylines and segments. And in between moving between protecting these various men and women, Kharma could have some rare matches here and there with the divas, and possibly the men. Face it, they were not going to have her wrestle divas on a regular basis. At least this way, she is getting used in a creative manner that could still connect with the fans.

Let me change topics slightly. When I talked about Gail Kim in the periphery, I referenced the role she played in TNA and talked about how the WWE could have used that to push her well. When I talked about Mickie James in the periphery, why did I not bring up her angle with Raven from TNA? That was not the kind of periphery diva I had in mind for her in the WWE. She was more of a lackey in that group in TNA, in my opinion, than an actual enforcer/bodyguard. Back when Lord Tensai first debuted and was relevant, he had a lackey. I don't think Mickie James should be a follower to someone. Push her as an arrogant valet/manager type. Let her be more of an equal to the man she is supporting or in the stable she is a part of.

Changing topics again, a while ago, I talked about how certain plays in football might just have a higher rate of success than others, regardless of who the players are involved in the play. I related that back to how certain types of careers in wrestling also have a a great rate of success, regardless of the individual being pushed in this great manner. I realized an even better way of explaining it.

I was lurking around a football message board and I noticed someone use the term "system quarterback" to describe Johnny Manziel. That means that he only had that success he had in college because the system they had there benefited him. It was based on the quarterback now starting for his old college putting up great numbers last week. It was the system that was great, not necessarily the player. This "system" label applies to various positions and even other sports. Some people can say some NBA players are only good in certain systems. When they change teams, they play poorly. If you have been watching sports for decades and already knew all this, forgive me for coming late to the game.

It can also apply to pro wrestling. Why shouldn't it? You can have some men and women that seem to thrive when they are in a position of success in a certain system, but when they go somewhere else, they flop. Is that because they are not that great? Is the new system just flawed? When I talk about the status quo, I am usually talking about the status quo of the system and how it is impacting the performers and quality of the product. You talk about Paul Heyman guys, Triple H guys, and Vince McMahon guys. Typically, these are guys that have the support of someone with swing to help them get a good push. Some of this seems to be losing value lately. The WWE thinks they can just toss guys on Paul Heyman and they are automatically Paul Heyman guys.

There are so many different things I can talk about in a discussion about system guys (or gals). Let me just run through a few people and talk about whether I think they are system guys. What do you look for? For those individuals that succeeded, was it because the system was in their favor? If the system was not in their favor, they are not system guys. If the system was in their favor, did they have the potential and talent to succeed even if they were not a part of that system? If they did, you can argue they were not system guys and could succeed on their own or in another system.

Let me start with Kharma. She did not last in the WWE long. But she was connecting well with the fans. And it definitely was through how she was being pushed. They had her destroy other divas. Just like Nexus excited people by destroying other guys, so was Kharma. And I already said, they likely would have continued to push her in the periphery, if they had kept her. Is Kharma therefor a system gal? I would say not. She was making a name for herself even before the WWE. That is what made her signing exciting for many fans. She definitely has the ability to connect with fans.

John Cena. He is a system guy. He has been pushed as the centerpiece for almost a decade, despite connecting poorly with the overall fanbase. Even back when he was hot with his rapper gimmick, the WWE allowed him to have that gimmick and ran with it. He is not that great of a wrestler. You can talk about his mic skills and charisma, but I don't think he is good enough to stand out if he had not gotten the kind of career he had gotten in the WWE. Just to save space, I would also say Batista is a system guy and for the same reasons I give for John Cena.

You should know the story of CM Punk by now. No one in the WWE wanted to give him a shot. Paul Heyman saved him and helped him become a star. Fact is, there was someone in the system that believed in him and helped him get a good career. CM Punk was featured well in ECW. He eventually won the ECW title. After debuting on Raw, he started to be treated even better. He won a World title almost right away. Soon won the tag titles. Won the Intercontinental title. Won another briefcase. He was frequently involved in elaborate storylines. A+ player? No. I would say A-. He dropped his pipe bomb and moved up a little in the company. He really wasn't pushed that awfully prior to that pipe bomb. He did deserve the better career, but the career he was getting was not that bad. Nevertheless, he is not a system guy. Not only does he seem to hate the system, but he has the talent and potential to succeed without the WWE.

What about Zack Ryder? He was not being pushed at all. He got over on his own through Youtube. And after he got over, they still did not want to run with him. He is definitely not a system guy. The system did not create him.

Mickie James is not a product of the diva system. They pushed her so much! So many title reigns! Yeah, but if you actually look at how they were pushing her and look at how over other women pushed like that typically become, she is more over than any of them. She got over while being pushed as a credible jobber, being used to put over the centerpiece and being used as interim centerpiece when the star was not around. She got over through her own abilities as a performer. The system was not in her favor.

To say that a quarterback is a product of the system is taking something away from him just like calling him a game manager is taking something away from him. When I say that a certain wrestler is a system guy, I don't mean to insult him. It just goes back to the idea of understanding whether a performer is having such great success because he is really that great or it is the play/system that is so great. That might help you separate the A+ players from the B+ players. Separate the system performers in the WWE from those that are truly the greats.