These two were underutilized. It is terrible how they were used. Some people say that these kind of workers should only be used to put over younger talent. There were points where The Dudleys were just jobbing to teams that were obviously not going anywhere on Superstars and Main Event. That was just dumb. Who really benefits from that? If you are going to bring back a legendary tag team like The Dudley Boys, you don't waste them like this. It reminds me of how the WWE brought RVD back a few years ago and failed to use him properly. At least he wasn't jobbing on Superstars to guys not likely going anywhere. The treatment with The Dudleys was even worse.
I can understand bringing back a veteran and using him as a jobber. Legends are more than just veterans. They are more than just guys that were around for a long time. They are guys that have stood out at a high level in a positive way for a long time. The Dudleys are a legendary tag team.
Let me just bring up a few names. Ignoring age and other such factors, just paying attention to the impact the workers have had, consider how the WWE would push these people if they returned. Would you expect the WWE to bring back Trish Stratus and just job her out to Summer Rae on Superstars? No. How about Jillian Hall returning and getting the jobber treatment? That is more believable. If Shawn Michaels came back for one more run, would you expect it to be for him to put over midcarders and lower-midcarders on Main Event? The WWE would not do that. How about Finlay coming back for one more run and being treated like that? Finlay is respected by wrestling fans, but he is more likely to be the guy being used to put over younger talent like that. Would it be hard to imagine The Bashams coming back and jobbing to jobbers in dark matches? I could imagine that. But The Dudleys? They are one of the most decorated tag teams ever. They have won titles all over the world, in various major promotions. They have had some degree of singles success, including Bubba winning the TNA Championship. They are popular. Jillian Hall, Finlay, and The Bashams can all be considered veterans at this point. Trish Stratus, Shawn Michaels, and The Dudleys have all had legendary careers. And yet, The Dudleys have not been treated as you would expect legends to be treated.
There were expectations that the WWE was heading towards Bubba turning on Devon and "Bully Ray" getting a run in the WWE. We'll never know how that might have worked out. But just going by how they have been pushed so far and other acts going on right now, the WWE probably would have had Bully Ray look good against Devon, then eventually fizzle out on him and leave him still jobbing on Superstars and Main Event to guys not likely going anywhere. He might get used as a jobber to the stars before sliding down the jobber hierarchy, but it would still not be what he deserved and what fans would enjoy, except those fans that enjoy chuckling at wrestlers being treated poorly that deserve better.
In the retirement segment on Raw, the WWE had The Club attack The Dudleys. It might be meant to give them some heat, but I am a believer that an over or credible worker giving another worker a rub will fail if the person getting the rub cannot help themselves. Not to get religious, but "God helps those that help themselves" is a saying some people believe in. How many times has John Cena gotten rubs from other people more popular and even more legendary than him? What has finally helped him in recent years to win over some of his critics is wrestling better matches, particularly last year during his runs with the United States Championship. Roman Reigns has gone over guys more popular than him and more credible than him in the ring, but it is not enough to fix his issues connecting with the crowd. The Club just does not look interesting when it is just Anderson and Gallows. They do not look like Nexus or The Shield. They don't look that dominant. They just look like two bald guys that lack genuine charisma. If The Bullet Club wasn't so popular with wrestling fans prior to the WWE version being formed, these two guys would probably have even less supporters than they have. Since The Dudleys are not really retired, I am not going to say the WWE ruined their moment. But they might as well have had The Shining Stars be the ones to attack them. They at least have a gimmick that goes beyond referencing what they have done in other countries and other promotions. Depending on how the segment was done, they also might have gotten better heat.
And then there are those reports of The Dudleys getting an ovation backstage from workers and officials. Nice gesture, but it doesn't let you off the hook for how poorly you treated them. Being respectful to workers backstage does not take the place of giving workers fair opportunities and using them right. That backstage respect does not mean you are necessarily paying these wrestlers what they earn or giving them an opportunity to earn that better career that will get them more money. I have heard these kind of stories a lot over the years, and not just for guys like Edge and Daniel Bryan. I have heard of women getting pushed as credible jobbers getting that backstage praise. Meanwhile, I'm watching them get pushed in a way in which I know they are not treated as stars where it matters, in front of the fans, and are not getting the opportunity to get that for themselves. Seeing as how The Dudleys are not really done in the business, that makes the backstage respect they got this week even more questionable. Thanking them for allowing the company to misuse them? Again, nice gesture, but how the company utilizes their workers in front of the audience matters more than how the company makes them feel backstage.
I want to do an aside. There were a few things concerning Sasha Banks that I did not get a chance to say. Specifically, there were two points I wanted to bring up even before she lost the title and took time off. Even though the ship might have sailed, I will still bring it up.
First, I noticed that the WWE was not really putting the work into Sasha Banks to develop her to be a star. Of course, it was something to just watch out for as her reign would continue. Her wanting to take a break and losing the title obviously changes that. Not only did her brief title run not feature her pushed in a big way to build her into a star, but the build up to her title win was not that grand. I have seen people saying for months that the fact that she was undefeated meant that the WWE was high on her. I have seen some people say before Wrestlemania that it was obvious Sasha was going to win. The only thing that is obvious is that Charlotte won, not Sasha. Sasha then became an afterthought for a while, eventually suffering a concussion at a house show. The push she got after returning from that injury eventually led to the title win, but her overall career on the main roster does not look like someone being groomed to be a star. Why is that? I would say there are three explanations.
First, she's a credible jobber. They don't want her over. Charlotte is the centerpiece of the Raw women's division. Sasha was just being pushed as a jobber to the centerpiece. The WWE does have a history of using women with wrestling credibility to put over the stars in title feuds.
Second, the WWE doesn't want to build stars anymore and are just going to rotate talented women's wrestlers. That is, at least on Raw. Smackdown's women's division looks like the diva era's last stronghold. There is all this hype over women's wrestling with some fans. Do you really need a centerpiece in this environment? Just rotate Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Bayley, maybe Paige, Becky Lynch, when she eventually ends up on Raw again, and other such women. The WWE does not need to do too much work in this kind of system with any one woman.
Third explanation, the WWE does want a centerpiece and they do want to give Sasha Banks a fair opportunity to earn it, but she has failed to earn that career for herself. That is why they have not done more with her. How can Sasha Banks have failed? Well, she has had those dangerous spots over the last year. If the WWE does not think she can stay healthy why would they want to make a long-term investment in her? The fact that she had another dangerous spot at Summerslam and is taking a few weeks off might further make the WWE think twice about Sasha Banks being a long-term star.
So which is it? Is Sasha a credible jobber? Is she just in a system that is no longer about building stars? Or has she gotten a legitimate chance and failed to impress? The WWE doesn't have a history of giving female wrestlers fair opportunities during the diva era, but you would hope they are fairer in the new era. It is just too soon to tell why the WWE has not treated Sasha better. There are various reasons, which will also provide insight for what other women like her might be in for in this new system. But there is just not enough there to say.
The second thing I wanted to bring up is that it would be interesting to see how the WWE treated the person that didn't walk away with the title after the Sasha/Charlotte feud ended. Obviously, Sasha Banks wanting to take time off created a special situation. If she did not take time off, how would the WWE have handled things?
Why is that even important? Stars aren't just relevant during title feuds. They will be treated as stars even outside of that. Look at Brock Lesnar. He has held the WWE Championship and feuded for it, but he has also had big matches that did not even involve a title. He just main-evented Summerslam against Randy Orton in a non-title match, ahead of even a match to crown the inaugural Universal Champion. Credible jobbers, jobbers to the stars, or whatever you want to call them, will likely only be relevant in title matters. Outside of that, especially for the women, they are treated very mediocre.
Stop and look at the previous Champions in the women's division in recent years and you will notice something interesting. Charlotte obviously just won it back. Sasha is out with an injury. Charlotte had won the title last year from Nikki Bella, who was out for months with an injury and only just officially returned to Smackdown. Nikki won it from AJ Lee, who retired. AJ traded the Diva's Championship with Paige, who is injured/suspended. AJ originally won it for the first time from Kaitlyn, who left. She won it from Eve, who left. Eve won it from Layla, who retired last year. And Layla won it from Nikki Bella back when she won it for the first time prior to The Bellas leaving the WWE. If I had actually brought this up when I would have liked, I would be saying that NONE of the former Champions in the women's division to win it in the last four years or so are still around, outside of Charlotte, who was still in the midst of her title feud with Sasha, obviously.
If the WWE wanted to come up with an excuse to hold back any of these recent Champions, these women are making life very easy for them. Some women that get title pushes will obviously eventually be depushed. The WWE cannot push everyone. But it would be interesting to see how the WWE treats former Champions in the new era. Would they try to treat them better? Or will they get depushed like Paige has been? When someone gets pushed well for a while and then gets depushed like that, fans are usually left thinking she did something to screw herself. That is what has happened to Paige. I would have liked to have seen if that would happen to Charlotte. Or would she get an angle in the periphery? Or a secondary women's feud? I now have to wonder that for Sasha. You don't have to wonder with Nikki Bella. She looks like she's filling the centerpiece spot on Smackdown.
Again, this is important because it can give you an idea of what other women are in for in this era and what the status quo really is. But all these injuries and women not sticking around make it hard to get a sense of what the WWE would like to do. Instead, you are seeing what they are doing in response to injury issues and poor depth. Will women winning the title in this era still be treated well after they lose the title? Or will they take a break to recover from their aching backs?
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