Hardys Return And Win Raw's Tag Titles

Wrestlemania featured a big return. The Hardys returned and ended up winning Raw's Tag Team Championships. They successfully retained the titles on Raw last night.

Of course, I have to compare this to The Dudleys returning a few years ago. Not only did they not win the tag titles in their first night back, not only did they not win the tag titles at all, but they were made to look like pathetic jobbers. They turned heel and started to look pathetic again shortly after that. It is no wonder they no longer wished to wrestle for the company, although their leaving was amicable and Devon still works for the company.

The Hardys seemed to be featured better by the WWE in their previous runs than The Dudleys, particularly when it comes to singles pushes. Both Matt & Jeff won multiple singles titles. It is not too shocking that the WWE might treat them better than The Dudleys with their return. Nevertheless, I would not have given them the tag titles like this.

This is just really unfair to the other teams. Enzo & Cass have been on the main roster for a year now, have become a pretty popular team, but have never won the tag titles. They seem to be on the edge of greatness. They have feuded against Chris Jericho & Kevin Owens. Cass was in a match to crown a new Universal Champion when Finn Balor got injured. They teamed with John Cena to face The Club. Around there would have been a good time to give them the tag titles. They got a storyline involving Rusev and Lana not too long ago. They got title shots after that. But they have never been given the tag titles.

You can say that they just have to wait. Problem is, will they still be fresh by then? Moreover, more teams are always going to be coming in. You saw that on Raw last night. You got teams coming in from NXT, potentially other teams from the past coming back together, and don't forget teams randomly being created, like Sheamus & Cesaro. Realistically, the time may never come for Enzo & Cass. Don't forget that most teams also eventually split. That could definitely happen with Enzo & Cass without them ever getting the tag titles.

Am I a hypocrite for not saying the same thing about The Dudleys back in 2015? I don't think so. Look at what was going on in the tag division at the time. New Day was on their second run and still heels at the time. How many other good face tag teams were there that deserved a title run? Prime Time Players had just gotten a title run. I think The Usos were still dealing with injury issues at the time. Besides that, they really didn't need the tag titles back then. Lucha Dragons had not really gotten into a big groove yet. There were really no great face options. When The Dudleys came back, they had momentum and freshness on their side. They should have gotten the tag titles. They could have dropped it to The Wyatts or The League of Nations in a proper feud. Instead, they became jobbers and everything went through New Day for over a year. A lot of teams got screwed over back then.

Right now, I would say there was another face team worthy of a title run that were passed over for the sake of the returning Hardys. That would be Enzo & Cass. That is why I think this situation is different from what you had with The Dudleyz in 2015. I am not saying Matt & Jeff had to return as jobbers. Anderson & Gallows could have lost the tag titles to Enzo & Cass, lost the rematch the next night on Raw, and then The Hardys could return to confront them and start a non-title feud. The Hardys don't need the tag titles to be relevant. Bringing them back is one thing, but having them go over like this just isn't good.

The Dudley Boys Leave The WWE

The Dudleys returned to the WWE last year. They had multiple title shots to take the tag titles from New Day, but the WWE never pulled the trigger. They soon entered a feud against The Wyatts, once again being used to put over another team. They were then treated very poorly for a while. They turned heel. It did not take long for them to be treated poorly again. It looked like they would stick around at least for another year, but they wanted out recently and the WWE granted their wish.

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?  

Split The Dudleys?

I said I wasn't going to do any mock draft, and I'm not. But I will look at certain specific scenarios. For example, the brand split has always created situations where teams were broken up. New Day brought that up on Raw this week. But I'm not going to talk about them. What about The Dudleyz? Should they split up?

Their return fizzled out rather easily. Their heel turn, which had many wrestling fans eager to see Bully Ray, has been mediocre. Maybe the next option is to actually split them up.

This might be the best way to let Bubba actually be the character he was during his best days in TNA again. Devon was obviously still his sidekick for part of that run back then, but the WWE may not be able to handle the push right if Devon was still with Bubba. When they look at these two, they probably just see a tag team. There are enough teams right now that the WWE doesn't need to push them as a tag team, but that is probably what they see when they look at them together. What would they see if they split them up? That is probably when Bubba can be his own guy again. Velvet Sky wants to come to the WWE. Maybe she can be paired with Bubba during his solo push.

Of course, you have to keep in mind that "Bully Ray" was more than just a gimmick. It was a gimmick in TNA that was pushed a certain way. This is the WWE. The WWE has an obvious hierarchy that Bubba is unlikely to reach the top of. And you always have to worry what will happen if he does gain momentum. Will they then use him to put over Roman Reigns or John Cena, then deflate him? At best, he should remain a midcard act, possibly upper-midcard. He might get a run with a midcard singles title. That's as far as I could see him going.

What about Devon? Remember when these two got split up over a decade ago and Devon was left with a reverend gimmick? I am not saying he should go back to that, but there is potential to push him with some kind of gimmick. Would he fit right in with New Day? Or be stuck with other lower-midcard veterans, like R-Truth and Goldust? I am sure he'll have something to do, although Bubba will likely be pushed better.

Would I split them up? Yes. They are not going anywhere in the tag division as it is. Fans might be excited for what happens with them when they get solo pushes. There is definitely creative potential there. And down the line, the WWE can put them back together for their true final run. And hopefully, that is when they get the tag titles.

Previewing Wrestlemania 2016: The Undercard

The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal has never led to a serious push for either of the first two winners. Big Show, last year's winner, certainly already has his career made. He's going to be in the WWE Hall of Fame. Cesaro, the first winner, has had his career go up and down. He has gotten a number of titles and accolades in between depushes. I know about the rumors about Braun Strowman winning and getting a big push later on. Since that might hinge on what the WWE does with Roman Reigns and injury issues, I am not picking him to win. I could imagine someone in The Social Outcasts winning. Would that be an insult to Andre? A jobber winning this? Well, is putting this match on the pre-show insulting? The WWE might do some funny things with someone from the group winning. And I do not think anyone else currently in the match can really benefit from this. I'll go with Heath Slater.

The Dudley Boys face The Usos. This match does not feel big enough for Wrestlemania, but at least there are some feuds going on in the tag division that go beyond the tag titles. Since The Dudleys turned heel just a few weeks ago, logic might say they win this match and continue their push. I am going to go against logic and say The Usos win. The WWE has not pushed The Dudleys well since they returned. At the same time, The Usos have not won anything major since they reunited. I'll go with them.

Kalisto defends the United States Championship against Ryback. Ryback went a few years without ever winning a title. There was a time when he seemed credible enough to win the WWE Championship. That never happened, bu he did win the Intercontinental Championship last year. I would say he does not really need another title reign again so soon. On the other hand, how serious is the WWE in pushing Kalisto as the new Mysterio? Having him bring this up in interviews and talking about him like he is the next Mysterio doesn't mean as much as booking him consistently. If his title reign ends this Sunday and he gets sent back to the tag division with Sin Cara, I doubt he will end up as the new Mysterio. I will say he retains the title.

Another multi-man ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. Kevin Owens faces Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler, Zack Ryder, Sin Cara, Miz, and Stardust. Some of these guys are just extra bodies. This match should have just been between Owens and Zayn. I would say those are the two favorites to win. I would have Owens retain and lose the title later to Zayn in a singles feud.

The New Day take on The League of Nations in a handicap match. Just a few weeks ago, The League of Nations destroyed New Day and actually looked like great heels. They actually looked like a group the WWE was serious in pushing again. Since then, it feels like they have lost some of that intensity. I still hope the group ends up winning the tag titles. Until then, I will say they beat New Day. They should. 

AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho is a match that I do not think needed to happen again. This is the fourth match in a rivalry that is only two months old. This is a rivalry that featured them teaming up and eventually becoming contenders for the tag titles. This is a rivalry that featured the team splitting and one guy turning on the other. All in two months. You would think this kind of story takes a lot longer than this to develop. And yet, here we are.

I want to say a few things about how this feud has been developed since Chris Jericho turned heel. I have seen some fans criticize the WWE for taking so long to make this match official. They waited until the final Raw before Wrestlemania. I do not have a problem with that. The story is that Jericho was trying to avoid facing Styles again. Styles had to get Jericho to agree to it. This isn't bad storyline development.

The other part of this storyline that I want to bring up is the WWE bringing up "AJ Styles" chants. That supposedly annoyed Jericho. The issue I have isn't really the fact that Jericho is pretty over in his own right, even as a heel.This is about Styles. They obviously want the guy over. They are not burying his popularity. But how about they stop pointing out that fans like him and actually take advantage of what makes him phenomenal and develop his character better. Push him better. Fact is, I am not impressed by those chants. Maybe my memory is going bad, but I am sure I remember times when fans have reacted to wrestlers better. Those "AJ Styles" chants can be better. The WWE needs to put more work into AJ Styles. Smarks will cheer for him because he is great wrestler. Marks will cheer for him because he is pushed as a face. Beyond those fans that are either always criticizing the product or buying into it rather easily, how about the general audience? AJ needs to win those fans over. The WWE needs to do more than run a storyline about people chanting for him. He's not Daniel Bryan.

As far as the winner, it has to be Styles. Jericho is a jobber to the stars.

Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar is a big match, but not one of the likely two candidates to close the show, despite the presence of Brock Lesnar. Not to knock Ambrose, but this feels like the weakest Wrestlemania opponent Lesnar has had yet. It is a great push for Ambrose and will help elevate him, but Lesnar has faced guys with more star power or where there was something on the line in his other Wrestlemania matches. This is still a match many wrestling fans will look forward to.

And it is going to be a street fight. On the one hand, I like that the WWE has really made a storyline out of the match type. Hardcore legends have been utilized to push this feud. On the other hand, I think the WWE could have told a better story. Brock got mad at Ambrose for getting in the way of Brock getting a title shot. He attacked Ambrose in the parking lot the night after that. Just build on that intensity that was there. I feel how the WWE has handled the story these last few weeks has highlighted the match type more than the intense emotion that was there. Either way, should be a fun match.

The wildcard in this match will be The Wyatts. Dean Ambrose obviously has a history with Bray Wyatt. Brock Lesnar, moreover, was supposed to have a mini-feud with Bray. Bray was injured and that match got ruined. I doubt the WWE will have it end like that. They will go at it down the road. Will the WWE use this match at Wrestlemania to build up to that future match? The Wyatts don't have anything else going for them right now. Because there will be no disqualifications in this match, you can definitely imagine The Wyatts getting involved. Will it be a poor way for Dean Ambrose's feud with Brock Lesnar to end to just use this match as a stepping stone for another feud for Lesnar? That's another issue. Let's see how the WWE actually handles the match and what comes after.

Who wins? How often does Lesnar lose? Network specials aside, Brock Lesnar has not had a PPV win in a while. He lost at Fast Lane. He lost at the Royal Rumble. Is Vince McMahon going to be worried about Lesnar possibly starting to look weak? Some fans say that they cannot imagine Ambrose beating Lesnar cleanly. Well, can you imagine it with weapons involved? An extreme spot? It could happen. Of course, as I said, interference is likely. Cleanly or not, Lesnar has not won a big match in a while and I think he will win one here.

The Tag Division Heading Into Wrestlemania 2016

There was a time a few years ago when the WWE was good with handing the tag titles off to teams that had momentum and actually looked like they deserved them. That changed within the last year or so. The WWE would shoot the titles to a team that lacked momentum, then have a title change just when it started to look like that team was really starting to look good. That booking practice came to an end when the WWE allowed New Day to put a stranglehold on the division.

In my opinion, the tag division recently has been pretty poor. It's been, well, booty. During this time when New Day has been holding the titles for months and months, there were several teams that had some freshness or momentum to them that were not booked to get the tag titles. The Dudleys returned and looked hot. They have lost all their feuds so far. The Usos came back together again and could have been a choice to get the tag titles. Nope. The Lucha Dragons looked like they might go somewhere. Injuries led to a solo push for Kalisto. If the WWE had put the tag titles on a face team, that would have opened up the possibility for some fresh feuds with other heel teams. The League of Nations could have used the tag titles. The Wyatts could have used the tag titles, especially with Bray Wyatt not wrestling right now. Simply sticking so long with New Day all these months is not fair to other teams. This has not been a situation where depth was poor. I know New Day sells merchandise, but you should be able to push people well without titles. Titles are not just accolades. They are used to tell stories and add to feuds. And there are other stories and feuds that can use those tag titles that do not need New Day involved.

At Wrestlemania, all three members of New Day will face all four members of The League of Nations. The League of Nations have already had two shots to win the titles and failed. Backing up for a second, this started out as a heel vs. heel feud. After that beating on Raw New Day received, they seem to be the ones going face. I can very well imagine the WWE having New Day retain again and continuing their run as faces. They are pushed too much. This should be the feud where they lose the tag titles. The League of Nations have been built up again to look strong. There was a time not too long ago where they just looked pathetic. Injuries played a role in that. Don't just hand them this momentum to feed them to New Day.

There is another tag feud being developed for Wrestlemania. The Usos will face The Dudleys. It is not unusual to sometimes see things get lost in the shuffle around Wrestlemania season. And this would have been a feud you might expect to see get lost in the shuffle. The Dudleys have been pretty mediocre heels. After a lot of initial excitement and dirtsheets stirring the pot with reports saying the WWE saw the great heel potential in Bubba, this whole feud with The Usos and storyline about no more tables is just not that great. If the WWE wasn't so ravaged by injuries, this feud probably would be lost in the shuffle. The only good thing I can say about this feud is that it shows you can have some kind of feud in the tag division away from the tag titles. And it did have potential to be better than it is. The WWE just is not going in that direction.

What would I rather see for Wrestlemania this year from the tag division? I think they should have gone with a multi-team match for the tag titles. The main problem with that is that the WWE might struggle to create enough matches with the limited roster. Let's say injuries were not an issue. You can have New Day defend the tag titles against The League of Nations, The Usos, and The Dudleyz. Throw in The Wyatts? Make this the match R-Truth and Goldust officially become a team? Social Outcasts? You might have a gauntlet match here. Tag Team Turmoil. There are a lot of angles going on in the tag division. More of them need to be featured better. And New Day cannot continue to be featured so much better than the rest of them. I don't care how many unicorn horns and boxes of cereal they sell.

The Wyatts Lose At Fastlane 2016

No title changes at Fastlane last night. The main event didn't feature any swerves. Nothing too exciting happened at all. What I want to talk about is a match I did not preview last week, The Wyatts vs. Big Show, Kane, and Ryback. If the heels had won, there would be nothing to talk about. They lost.

I have said before that the WWE should push The Wyatts better now that many top stars are out and they do not have many great top feuds going. Having them lose to three jobbers to the stars isn't going to do it. The feud wasn't that amazing to start with, but the heels should have won and gone on to something better. They did not get involved with Lesnar later in the night. Bray Wyatt didn't job, but this booking still slows down the group's momentum. Are they building these guys up for something big at Wrestlemania? Recent booking might not suggest that.

Think back a few months to when The Wyatts feuded against four guys from ECW. The Wyatts won that feud and The Dudleys soon became jobbers. The faces winning there might have been a nice gesture. The Dudleys have not won a feud since coming back. Would that loss have ruined the group's momentum? I do not think it would have been worse than the needless loss they took last night. The Dudleys were fresher. Let's just see how the WWE follows up.

The Dudley Boys Turn Heel

The Dudley Boys returned to the WWE a few months ago and it did not take long for them to fizzle out. In recent weeks, they were jobbing to teams far below them in dark matches. This week, they came back with a vengeance. And they turned heel.

Is this what it will take to get the tag titles on these guys? Problem with that, New Day are still holding the titles and they are heels. The WWE also seems to love that trio. I have said before that the WWE should be able to push these guys well even when they are not holding the tag titles. Are they just going to run them into the ground until they lose all their freshness, then take the titles off them?

The WWE used to be good with giving the tag titles to teams that had momentum. I think there were a few teams over the last few months that had it and could have gotten the tag titles from New Day. The WWE never pulled the trigger. There will be some new freshness and momentum to The Dudley Boys now that they have turned heel, but will the WWE pull the trigger now?

Was this decision to turn them heel done to fix depth issues in the tag division? Are there too many face teams and too few heel teams? Aside from New Day, The Wyatts are also still a group. The WWE could utilize them more in the tag title hunt. The WWE could also do better with The Ascension. The League of Nations is not likely to be a true threat in the tag division with their members banged up like they are. Overall, this heel turn could lead to a fresh feud for when New Day eventually does lose the titles and their push. Just rotate in The Dudley Boys in that spot as top heels in the tag division.

It also seems the "Bully Ray" character is coming back. It was praised very well in TNA. Of course, a lot of things look great in TNA and do not carry over very well in the WWE. Gail Kim is an example of that. The WWE did not try very well with her. She was just there to be a credible jobber. I would expect to see the WWE do better with Bubba. But how far will he go? To the tag titles and beyond? He went all the way to the World Championship in TNA. I doubt he goes that far here. Too many younger guys ahead of him. I just hope this does not turn into another instance of the WWE believing something that worked out well in a smaller company will automatically work for them now.

Team ECW Just Cannot Beat The Wyatts

The Wyatts beat Team ECW at TLC. That was not too shocking. That was followed by another brutal match the next night on Raw. This was an Extreme Rules match. The Wyatts once again won.

Should the WWE have let the ECW guys win that match in Philadelphia on Monday? That is ECW country. The Dudleys, Tommy Dreamer, and Rhyno are all over 40. It's not like they need the rub. But it might have been a nice gesture. It might have been a nice moment. As I have said before, these ECW guys are not as legendary in the WWE as someone like The Undertaker, who has gone over Bray Wyatt twice this year already, but Raw might have had another nice moment if the ECW guys had won.

Then again, maybe it is for the best that The Wyatts look strong again. The story of Bray's career on the main roster has been looking strong against people at his level and below him, then being used to put someone over. Sprinkle in some periods where it seems creative has nothing for him and those times he has lost feuds and moved on to another like nothing happened. These old ECW guys were definitely below him. Perfect group to put him and the rest of his guys over.

Where will The Wyatts move on to? Whenever Bray Wyatt is looking good, you have to wonder whom the WWE will feed him to. Roman Reigns in an eventual title feud? There really aren't many top stars around. To make matters worse, Bray Wyatt has already feuded with a lot of the top stars on the roster. Randy Orton is injured. Are there another four guys for The Wyatts to feud with as a group? I doubt the WWE goes with The Wyatts vs. Roman Reigns and his pals. If the WWE has no long-term plan, those ECW guys might end up putting over a stable with nowhere to go after.

The Wyatts Vs. The Dudleys & Friends

Outside of title feuds, the most interesting thing going on in the WWE right now is the feud between The Wyatts and The Dudleys. Bray Wyatt once again shows that wins and losses do not matter, having lost a feud to The Brothers of Destruction and just transitioning to another feud easily. As for The Dudleys, how can you have a TLC PPV and not include one of the teams that helped to make Tables, Ladders & Chairs famous?

What makes this feud even more intriguing is the fact that The Dudleys were outnumbered. There are four men in The Wyatts stable. The Dudleys recently recruited Tommy Dreamer to help them. Tommy Dreamer retired from the WWE years ago, but he has not been out of wrestling at all. He is likely to pop up in any wrestling promotion for a brief stint.

These former ECW guys are still outnumbered. Who will that fourth guy be to side with the faces against The Wyatts for TLC? Rhyno is down there in NXT. The WWE can bump him up for a week. There is RVD. Those seem like the two likely guys, since it is likely to be an ECW guy. If not, there is Kane. He was just feuding with The Wyatts recently. Anybody but Jericho.

One of the main criticisms I have had for the WWE for a while now is always bringing back all these people and signing more people, while not using the roster properly. Tommy Dreamer is certainly not a big draw. I doubt the fourth guy will be a big draw. Since this seems to be just for a short feud and the roster is so ravaged by injuries, I will not condemn the WWE for what they are doing here.

Who should win this feud? Bray Wyatt is obviously someone that has been treated as a jobber to the stars. He will beat people below him or at his level, but it usually is to build him up to feed to whom the WWE wants to put over. He just put over the legendary Undertaker for the second time this year. Will the WWE use The Wyatts to put over some ECW legends? I do not think the WWE is as high on ECW as they are on The Undertaker. The Wyatts should win this feud. The faces can get the momentum leading up to TLC, then The Wyatts win at the PPV.

The Usos Pop Back Up

I usually do not talk about the tag division two times in a row. The Usos returned to Raw this week to take part in the main event. Jey Uso was injured a few months ago and Jimmy Uso has not really done anything too important since then. But they are back as a team.

The tag division does not have a centerpiece in the same way the overall men's division or women's division in the WWE has. Despite that, many fans viewed The Usos as the faces of the tag division at one point prior to that injury to Jey Uso. What does their return mean to the tag division?

First off, you have the obvious feud between the heel Tag Team Champions and The Usos, who are still faces. This should be a good feud. It would be a fresh feud. I will not speculate right now whether or not The Usos will win the titles from New Day.

What does this mean for The Dudleys? I just got finished saying the WWE should have given them the tag titles by now. Not long after they returned, I imagined them eventually feuding with The Usos. I felt this could even be a face vs. face feud. Or turn The Dudleys heel. Or The Usos. Or add in a third team, like New Day, and make it a 3-way feud. This could have been a great feud. The WWE might still go there, but I do not feel the same freshness will be there. The WWE ruined the momentum The Dudleys had. I do not think the returning Usos have the same hype to them that the returning Dudleys had. The Dudleys are legends. The Usos come from a wrestling family and a lot of fans do like them, but they are not at the level of The Dudleys. It isn't good to ruin the momentum of The Dudleys, even if The Usos are the ones being pushed in their place.

The Dudleys Still Without Gold

The New Day retained the titles once again against The Dudley Boyz. They don't deserve that "z" anymore. The Dudleys have gotten a few shots in the last few months and the WWE has not booked them to get the tag titles. They are not done in the WWE and I still believe it is only a matter of time before they do get another run.

Regardless, the WWE should have given them the tag titles by now. I felt the perfect time would have been in New York City a few weeks ago. I am not saying the WWE had to hand them the tag titles the first chance they had. Make it a bit of a journey, but don't take too long. You might ruin these guys' momentum and freshness. You might fail to take advantage of the hype while it is there. I think that is what is happening.

Is it that New Day have developed some momentum of their own? I do not think that should matter too much. I am not denying these guys have done well in the last few months. I even wondered at one point what kind of reaction this match might have in front of certain audiences. The crowd might not be completely behind The Dudleys. Nevertheless, the WWE should be able to keep New Day relevant without the tag titles. Or how about just letting The Dudleys hold the titles for a month or two before handing them back to New Day, making them 3-time Tag Team Champions in less than a year?

Look at how the WWE handled RVD coming back. They hyped him up. That must have excited the fans. And then they completely fumbled with him after that. He never accomplished anything noteworthy. He was a jobber to the stars. If he came back more often since then, he would be another Jericho. I am not saying Rob Van Dam had to win the briefcase. I am not saying he had to win a World title. An Intercontinental Championship run would have been nice. Even without that, can't you develop better feuds for this guy outside the title picture?

Look at Mickie James returning to TNA in 2010. A lot of fans were looking forward to that. Mickie James would have the chance to become the first woman to have held the WWE Women's Championship, WWE Diva's Championship, and TNA KO Championship. TNA took months to finally get the title on her. They did not take advantage of the hype and momentum when it was there. Having her feud with Tara first was fine. Tara was Madison Rayne's sidekick. Mickie having to go through her to get to Madison made sense. But TNA just dragged everything on and had Mickie James fail on her first 2 tries to get the title. It took about 6 months after she returned to win the title. It only should have taken 3 or 4 months.

The Dudleys have now failed in their 3 tries to get the titles. And much like RVD, they are starting to look like jobbers. They have lost that momentum. Just like Mickie James eventually won the title, I still believe The Dudleys will get them. But it is not just about honoring these guys. It is about taking advantage of hype while you have it. You expect these wrestlers to tell stories in the ring, but these wrestling promotions also tell stories with their workers through how they push them. I gave the WWE credit for making something out of Nikki Bella breaking a record. They really made it a storyline. They took proper advantage of the situation. But they did not do that here with The Dudleys. Again, I am not saying they had to give them the titles right away, like they recently did with Alberto Del Rio, but they are just killing the hype that was there at first.

Hell In A Cell 2015 Preview

I will talk about Kane/Rollins and Undertaker/Lesnar later. I'll just say a little about the undercard for Hell in a Cell now.

Kevin Owens defends the Intercontinental Championship against Ryback. This is where this feud should end. Owens retains.

The New Day defend the tag titles against The Dudleys. I still say the WWE should have had the title change happen in New York weeks ago. It will probably happen here.

Charlotte defends the Diva's Championship against Nikki Bella. As long as Nikki Bella stays in the WWE and nothing happens to ruin her position, she should be regaining the title one day. I just doubt it will happen so soon. Then again, Paige can screw Charlotte out of the title somehow. I will say Charlotte retains and goes on to feud with Paige.

John Cena has an open challenge for the United States Championship. That is not surprising. Given the rumors of Cena taking time off, a lot of fans might expect that Cena will lose the title here. I will not even speculate on the outcome. I will also not speculate on whom the WWE sends out to face Cena. It really can be anyone. As long as it isn't Chris Jericho, it should be good.

The kickoff match has changed. The WWE has dumped a bunch of guys into one match. It will be Dolph Ziggler, Cesaro & Neville vs. Sheamus, Rusev & Barrett. Yeah, this feels like a kickoff match. Might as well let the faces win.

Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns will meet inside Hell in a Cell. This feud has had its ups and downs. Has the WWE done a good job of bringing up that personal heat that was there. That Raw segment last night was a good try. This is another feud that should end here. It would be nice if this match had no shenanigans. Just let the two go at it. None of the other Wyatts need to get involved. No spooky tricks from Bray Wyatt, even though Halloween is so close. Momentum seems to be on the side of Roman Reigns, but I still feel he will win at Hell in a Cell. If he does lose, will this feud continue even longer? The WWE can build some kind of Survivor Series match with this feud. They can then have some kind of gimmick match at TLC to end the feud. I would not be too surprised if the feud does continue, regardless of Sunday's outcome.

The Dudleys Continue Their Feud Against New Day

New Day managed to walk out of Night of Champions with the tag titles. But The Dudleys are still in line for a title shot and will be getting a rematch in a few days in New York.

It was never really a question of whether or not they would regain the titles. It was just a matter of when they would. Should Bubba and Devon win the titles in New York City at the WWE Network special? I think it would be a great time. It would be a great place to do it. Besides that, the WWE should have some exciting things happen on these specials. The NXT Championship changed hands a few months ago at one of these events in Japan. I would not be surprised to see a title change here, and it just might be the tag titles.

Can you imagine The Dudleys getting booed? It probably won't happen in New York City. They are feuding against entertaining heels. As faces, New Day sucked. As heels, New Day rocks. I don't care too much for them, but I see fans liking them. It is not unusual for entertaining heels to get cheered. In some cases, the faces they are going against might get booed. To be fair, The Dudleys have not exactly been bland since returning. They are bringing the tables. They are bringing some attitude. You might get some dueling chants. But might the day come when they get booed? Might be sad to see.

The Dudley Boys Get Their Feet Wet

Coming off their surprise return last week, The Dudley Boys have wasted no time getting in the ring. They seem to be rolling through the tag division already. It seems obvious that it won't be a question of if these guys will win the tag titles. It will be a question of when will these guys win the tag titles.

How long will it take for these guys to really end up with nothing fresh to do? I have read that the WWE signed them to a long-term deal and they will be regulars, including house shows. Is that really smart? As I have said, they are already rolling through the tag division. The New Age Outlaws had an ideal push last year. Even look at the push Rob Van Dam had. The WWE hyped him up. He came back at Money in the Bank. He didn't win there. He was used to put over Alberto Del Rio. He took some time off. He came back and once again didn't do anything major. It was lame, but pushing him for a while, letting him take a break, and then bringing him again is a strategy the WWE can use with The Dudley Boys. Keep them fresh.

The only way I can imagine them staying important on a consistent basis without getting annoying is joining The Authority. That would mean they turn heel and The Authority maintains their heel identity. They can serve the purpose The Shield once served in the stable.

I have seen some people say Bubba is a possible main-eventer. TNA pushed Bully Ray as a top star for a while. He was even back there not too long ago this year as an authority figure. Would pushing him at that level be a good idea? I do not think so. There are already too many younger guys that are ahead of them. The WWE cannot even handle them properly. They do not need the possibility of splitting The Dudley Boys to push Bubba as a main-eventer.

The Dudleys & Sting Return

The Dudleys made their return to Raw and put themselves right in the middle of the tag division. After having said for almost a year that the tag division was mediocre, filled with lower-midcarders and midcarders that are really not going anywhere, THIS is something that can cause some excitement.

But let me look at some of the cons to this. The WWE once again shows that they have to rely on part-timers and guys that were stars at the turn of the century to create hype for them right now. That is a lack of confidence in their current talent and failure to properly develop them. I cannot imagine any team in the WWE tag division this year before The Dudleys came back that can generate that kind of hype in 10 years. You can talk about The Dudleys giving a rub to these teams, but it probably won't work out as you would like. A rub means nothing if the company does not follow up. I do not expect the WWE to follow up with any of these younger teams after The Dudleys do go away again.

Weighing the pros and cons of The Dudleys return, I would say it is great overall. I have said that the WWE should stop signing and bringing in all these guys because they have so many already and cannot use them efficiently. The only exception to bringing in guys from other promotions is if they can really create a boost in your main product. NXT does not need it as badly as the main product. The Dudleys can help the tag division. The tag division needed this boost badly. The Dudleys are not the future of the tag division. They aren't even the present of the tag division. They are both over 40. But they can create some excitement for a while. The New Age Outlaws did it a few years ago. I expect The Dudleys to be used in a similar way.

Sting also returned on this week's Raw. He will be challenging Seth Rollins for the WWE Championship at Night of Champions. He loses his only match in the WWE earlier this year, and now gets a title shot? Sting is a legend, so I'm willing to overlook that.

I have to repeat what I said before. This is another example of the WWE relying on part-timers and guys that were stars at the turn of the century to create hype for them right now. Utilizing Sting for big PPVs is one thing. This is Night of Champions. You don't have faith in your own guys? Your full-timers? Cena? I am not saying Cena needs to be gunning for the WWE Championship, but do you need a part-timer to do it? Why is Sting even still mad at The Authority? He shook Triple H's hand after their match at Wrestlemania. Don't ask me why. The Authority hasn't even been too heelish in recent months. Of course, given how poorly the WWE has created new stars, there are really no fresh options for Seth Rollins and his WWE title defense. I'm fine with Sting.

Let me do an aside. The divas once again got a bad reaction during their match on Raw this week. They weren't in Lesnar Country this time. They were in Brooklyn, my hometown. New York is a smark city. It also does not help that NXT put on a show just a few days ago in Brooklyn where the women's match arguably stole the show. Sasha Banks was in that match, which explains why some of those Brooklyn fans wanted to see her. The match on Raw was not that exciting. Moreover, none of the divas involved have gotten that over with the fans. Paige has shown signs of being capable of becoming very over, but has not clinched it. Charlotte being the daughter of Ric Flair will not carry her. The Bellas have shown promise, but the WWE has not handled them properly, and they are not going to be liked in a smark environment. Alicia Fox is Alicia Fox. I don't know what to say for Becky Lynch.

I have seen some of these women criticize the fans for how they act. I won't say the fans never should be criticized. There are some situations where they definitely are asses. And they definitely should not be allowed to attack the performers, like what you had with Roman Reigns a few weeks ago. But I do not think the fans should be criticized for how they acted on Raw. If you want to keep their attention and get a great reaction, you have to earn it. What you did on NXT should not carry you on the main roster. And it won't. I am not saying the blame should go entirely on the women for a mediocre match. Blame the WWE for poor character and storyline development. Blame the WWE for not demanding better from these women in the ring. How can these women that put on amazing matches on NXT look so mediocre on the main roster? They have some impressive spots here and there, but it is not enough. The WWE needs to raise expectations. It is not enough to just increase match time.

If these women want to criticize someone, they should criticize their bosses. This is not about being insubordinate or selfish, which sometimes seems to motivate certain workers to criticize the company. This is about demanding to be used properly. They don't need to do it on Twitter or riot in the streets. Do it backstage. Do it professionally. But do it sternly. If that fails, then go on Twitter. This whole thing wasn't even started by these women standing up for themselves. It all started because Emma lost a quick match and that was the straw that broke the camels back. Fans complained. And now some of these women and the fans of the diva movement want to criticize bored fans? It's not their fault. These women are not delivering. And I blame the WWE, not them. But they need to demand better from the company or things will never really get better. The WWE can shrug of fans very easily. I doubt they can do the same to a strong stand from their own workers.