Should Dean Ambrose Be The New Centerpiece?

Roman Reigns, the new centerpiece of the WWE, got suspended less than a year into his run at the top started. John Cena, the former centerpiece, hasn't really taken over the show in his absence. It is not unusual to see Cena be treated as the main guy on Raw, even if he wasn't holding the title. No, for the most part, the WWE is pushing Dean Ambrose, the WWE Champion, rather well.

Dean Ambrose, however, is not the true centerpiece. What makes you the centerpiece isn't whether or not you are holding the top title or whether or not you are in the main event more times than anyone else in a given month. It is about how they are pushing you over time. It is about how they push you when that title reign ends. Until the WWE does officially ditch Roman Reigns, he is still the guy. That makes Dean Ambrose the interim centerpiece.

It happens all the time in sports that a head coach gets fired in the middle of a season and someone is chosen as interim head coach If that guy can do a great job, however, the "interim" comes off and he becomes the head coach for the team.

Should the "interim" come off for Dean Ambrose? Should he be the new guy? I am not asking whether Roman Reigns should lose the job. I have already brought that up. I will probably bring it up again, but that is not what I am doing here. This is just about Ambrose. In the absence of Roman Reigns, is Dean Ambrose doing enough to make people say this guy is the long-term face of the company?

It might be too early to say. I will bring this back up again later. But what are the kind of things you should be watching out for? Fan reactions obviously matter. You also have to keep ratings in mind. The centerpiece isn't just a guy being pushed to be a star. He is a guy being pushed to be a draw. You should also take a step back and look at the guy objectively. Look at his talent and potential. How far can you really go with this guy? Because this is someone you are going to push at the top for years and years to come. Can his act get stale fast? Or is this a guy that can consistently be someone fans enjoy seeing?

Just giving my initial reaction, I don't think the WWE should write off Dean Ambrose too quickly and just count the days until Roman Reigns comes back. Dean Ambrose isn't perfect, but he deserves a fair shot in that centerpiece spot until Reigns comes back. He already connects with fans better than Reigns. Of course, the WWE can also consider a three-headed monster at the centerpiece spot. Just keep rotating all The Shield guys at the top. Eventually, however, that is just going to get annoying.