Alberto Del Rio Goes Back To Jack Swagger

Alberto Del Rio had a feud brewing with Jack Swagger. They have feuded before, but with Del Rio as the face and Swagger as the heel. Also with Zeb Colter on Jack Swagger's side. Del Rio is now the heel and has Zeb on his side. The United States Championship is also in the mix this time. The feud was put on hold due to the WWE Championship tournament, but they are going back to it.

The outcome of this feud seems obvious. Alberto Del Rio wins. Jack Swagger was doing nothing prior to this push. All of a sudden, the WWE starts investing in him again. But obviously to put over Del Rio. The WWE did this same thing last year to use Swagger to put over Rusev. Jack Swagger did such a great job, I wondered if he should be the one to hand Rusev his first real loss. It was also disappointing when the WWE just deflated him after that. I expect a repeat of last year.

Could the WWE do more? There is this Mexican-American angle going on. The WWE could build a stable out of this. If nothing else, a tag team with a manager. Jack Swagger and Zeb are no strangers to that, having a group with Cesaro in the past. Jack Swagger would be a great choice to partner with Zeb and Del Rio. Del Rio represents Mexico and Swagger represents the United States. It would keep Jack Swagger relevant. It would add to this angle they have going on. And even after Del Rio does lose the United States Championship, he can go after the tag titles down the line. If the WWE does not find a good way to keep this angle fresh, it could fizzle out fast.

Battleground 2014 Preview: Part 2

Nothing has really happened since I last talked about the WWE title match. Ric Flair came back and gave Cena the thumbs up. It's not like there has been a ton of time in between PPVs to develop an interesting title feud. It is still likely Cena wins. That feud against Brock Lesnar seems imminent. Some fans say Brock Lesnar can interfere at Battleground and cost Cena the title, which will branch off into the feud between the two for Summerslam. I don't agree with that idea. This would be the third PPV encounter between the two. The first was over a decade ago and was for the WWE Championship, but Cena was not yet a big star back then. The match they had after Lesnar came back was at Extreme Rules. How do you raise the bar for the third encounter? With nothing on the line and no special gimmick to the match? I don't think so. Put the title on the line. That means Cena wins at Battleground.

The feud between Bray Wyatt and Chris Jericho has been disappointing. I am not just saying that because I didn't like this feud from the start. It has just remained in that cryptic stage. Why is Bray Wyatt doing what he is doing? It looked like he could almost give a great promo to develop this feud on Raw, but then he just started going off in vagueness. You can get a sense of what might be the kayfabe reason for the feud. Bray Wyatt thinks Jericho is a hypocrite. He claims he will save the fans, but never does anything. Bray can sell himself as the true savior. This feud will obviously go on beyond Battleground, but they better do a better job telling the story. Bray Wyatt will probably win at Battleground.

The feud between Jack Swagger and Rusev has not disappointed. Not only do I like it, the fans seem into it, as well. I can say that I would love for this feud to spill over to Summerslam, but I don't even know if the WWE can keep it going in an interesting manner. Having supporting players sometimes helps to prolong a feud in an interesting manner. You have Zeb and Lana. They have been the mouthpieces for their respective wrestler. It will really be up to what they do with them to help prolong this feud in a great way. Having back-and-forth debates that lead to brawls between Rusev and Swagger can only be done so often before it becomes stale. If they are going to prolong this feud, Rusev doesn't need to win this match. He shouldn't. I am not saying Swagger pins him or gets him to tap. Let the match end in a DQ or count-out. Keep Swagger looking strong here.

I want to spend some time on the diva match, which is why I left it for last. Paige gets her rematch against AJ Lee. Some people might say that there is no real feud here. They seem to be on the same side. Are you getting the kind of vibe that was there for Orton vs. Christian on Smackdown a few years ago? Christian finally won the big one, in terms of his WWE career, and loses the title right away to Randy Orton. That developed into a heel turn for Christian. Paige won the title, they can run this storyline where she is frustrated with people not believing in her and her inability to regain the title, and she snaps and turns heel. Just like they prolonged Christian's heel turn during that storyline, they will likely do the same thing now. Regardless, it just makes sense for AJ Lee to retain at Battleground.

Should Paige turn heel? I pointed out even before AJ Lee returned that there was horrible heel depth, especially with credible jobbers. Cameron turned heel, but that is no big help. You have Layla turning on Fandango and going face. AJ Lee might be turning face with the way things are going. You have had a lot of tweener action going on recently in the diva division. Very messy. No, I am not going to say that the diva division is the worst it has ever been because of that. There is still better creative depth now than a few months ago. You can say that all these storylines going on is the reason the line between faces and heels is so blurred. Okay, but I would also say bad depth also has something to do with it. They need a heel turn from someone with good wrestling credibility. Paige is a face credible jobber that is likely to turn heel. She should turn heel.

Is a heel turn necessarily a good thing for Paige? If a performer can't get over as a face, turn them heel. That is the philosophy of many fans. They sometimes overlook whether the WWE actually wants the performer over. I agree that heels sometimes have a better chance at connecting with the fans, but that is not the issue here. The issue is how the WWE will actually push Paige. I don't want to compare it completely to Orton/Christian. If the WWE ends up doing the same kind of storyline for Paige, I may end up doing an entry just comparing Christian back then to Paige now. Nevertheless, Christian's heel turn didn't exactly mean they were ready to treat him better. This possible heel turn for Paige isn't really an opportunity to get her over with the fans so she can get better treatment. This seems really meant just to cover depth issues.

How about AJ Lee? This is the best creative interest put into a diva title feud in a long time. The WWE just had Paige cycling through feuds. Some of those feuds were more about something else other than the title. Paige vs. Naomi wasn't as interesting as Cameron turning heel. Paige vs. Alicia Fox wasn't as interesting as Alicia's crazy gimmick. Paige vs. Tamina wasn't interesting at all. And AJ Lee had a lot of dry feuds prior to Paige winning it from her. Is the fact that they are investing in an AJ Lee title feud now a sign she is the centerpiece of the diva division? Paige is a credible jobber. They are developing what will likely be an elaborate feud. The WWE also gave AJ Lee a very good feud last year against Kaitlyn. That feud was also an extension of AJ's periphery matters with Dolph Ziggler and Big E. They need to show better consistency with AJ Lee in developing credible jobbers to put her over before I am ready to say they want her to be the centerpiece.

Taking that a step further, is the diva division over? The diva division is a women's division that revolves around a centerpiece and this idea that eye-candy divas should be featured prominently. Since 1998, they have wanted an eye-candy diva as the centerpiece. Developing AJ Lee as the centerpiece could be the end of the diva division. And yet, that does not mean the dark age is over. The dark age ends when things get efficient and respectable again. Things are still too messy, even with AJ Lee around. And with so many eye-candy divas around, including Summer Rae and The Bellas, I don't think the WWE has given up on the desire to create another centerpiece that will follow in the line of Sable and Trish Stratus. They need to do a lot more with AJ Lee and all the other divas, including hiring more female wrestlers, before I am ready to say the status quo has truly changed.

Swagger Vs. Rusev: An Actual Midcard Feud To Be Proud Of

I wasn't going to say anything after Emma's arrest. When she got released, I figured I would have to spend today talking about that. Same day, she gets rehired. Let's leave that there.

When Zeb Colter and Jack Swagger came out to confront Lana and Rusev, that got me excited. And the fans were really into it. Jack Swagger looked great in that segment. This midcard feud has great potential. I like Jack Swagger. And I have said before that I think they can do some great things with the character Rusev has. And what happened on Raw is an example of what I was thinking of. Some fans have been questioning when the WWE would get around to this feud. It pretty much writes itself. Here it is. And I think it will be great.

Not to speak too soon, but it seems like this is a feud Rusev would normally win. Jack Swagger has been jobbing a lot for most of his career in recent years. It would be obvious to say Swagger is just being developed here to put over Rusev. If Swagger can continue connecting well with the fans through this push, I would hope the WWE changes plans and lets Swagger beat Rusev. Why let Cena get all the wins against well-developed opponents? And it might also be too soon to say this, but if Swagger can continue that momentum, it would be nice to see him be World Champ one more time.

What if the WWE does not like how the fans are reacting? I just said that it seems obvious Swagger is just being developed to be a challenge for Rusev to go through. He is the one they are really interested in pushing. It all comes down to how badly they want to stay the course. Would the WWE purposely "botch" this push for Swagger? Am I saying the WWE would purposely try to mess up the career of one of their own workers if they get more over than the WWE would like? Sure, why not? Fans are interested in this feud. The WWE should be happy with that. Let it grow. Go in the direction of what the fans want. What the WWE does with Swagger after this feud will be interesting to see. They should try to find something for him.

Tag Teams Splitting Up

You have had some teams either splitting up or on the verge of splitting up recently. Why not talk about those teams a little?

The Prime Time Players are no more. Titus O'Neil turned on Darren Young. There is a little bit of a push there for Titus, as well as Darren Young. But I would not expect too much to come of this. These guys are still just lower-midcarders. Remember when Brodus Clay turned heel and broke up Tons of Funk? Where's Tensai now? I would expect pretty much the same thing to happen with Titus O'Neil and Darren Young.

The Real Americans may not have much time left as a team. They teased friction a while ago between Swagger and Zeb. Cesaro may end up sticking with Zeb Colter and Swagger will be left on his own. It would have been better if they had developed these two better as a team. They could have been a good choice to win the tag titles at one time.

Friction is being teased even more in The Shield. The WWE is developing Roman Reigns to be the breakout star. Dean Ambrose seems to be starting some issues. Seth Rollins is trying to keep the peace. The end seems pretty much near. You don't see internal tension being a story for The Wyatts, who will face The Shield at Extreme Rules. Will The Shield become a 2-man group? That is another issue.

The Rhodes have not split up and are not on the verge of doing that, but if you think about it, it is only a matter of time. They are not feuding against The Authority anymore, they are no longer in the hunt for the tag titles, and what else is there for them? People sometimes bring up Cody Rhodes facing Goldust for Wrestlemania. I don't know if the WWE is thinking that as a big enough match for the PPV, but Wrestlemania is coming up. Splitting them up around now can lead up to that match.

You have a bit of a downgrade in the tag division. People can list all the teams that are still in the division, but how relevant are all these teams? How likely is it that Los Matadores get a serious push? And with more legitimate teams breaking up, that will hurt things even more. Another issue for these teams on the verge of splitting is doing it at a good pace. Do not take too long to do it. It might get as annoying as the friction between Randy Orton and The Authority. Either decide to do it and follow through or decide not to and keep the team together. Don't get fans excited about something happening and then not do it. And to replace some of these teams, a few more teams might need to be created or debut.

Zeb Cannot Be Happy

Jinder Mahal wishes he had facial hair like that.

Dolph Ziggler has finally cashed in and won the World's Heavyweight Championship. And this reign has already lasted longer than his first one. With the manner the WWE has been treating the guy who is holding that title, Ziggler should be featured well for a while, especially on Smackdown. That will give Big E and AJ a rub. But will they have fresh feuds for him? They spent so much time developing his credibility through feuds with Jericho, Orton, and Cena, there may not be a lot of interesting feuds they can develop. A basic title feud with Sheamus would be so bland.

Speaking of interesting feuds, the title feud between Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger is obviously over. Where does that leave Swagger and Zeb Colter? I said about two months ago that you could have a good storyline for a feud between Swagger and Del Rio, and no title was necessary. The WWE didn't develop that storyline as best as they could have. Now that the title is no longer a likely option for Swagger, even though he is hovering around the title scene, will the WWE drop the gimmick? Where does that leave Colter? Swagger can go back to being a jobber to the stars, but Colter won't be necessary for that. Does that mean the guy only entered for essentially one feud and it's over? It would be nice if the WWE still continued pushing the gimmick to make the midcard more interesting. There are a few faces on the roster who may not fit into Jack Swagger's America.

The People And Wrestlemania

This is quite possibly the worst Wrestlemania season I can remember. The build just isn't too great. Rather than complain about everything, I am just going to talk about the feud between Jack Swagger and Alberto Del Rio.

This is a storyline that had potential. I was expecting to talk about it in a different manner than I am going to. Mr. Whiskers, Zeb Colter, is an interesting character. Jack Swagger is a great wrestler in the ring. The gimmick works perfectly against Alberto Del Rio. What is the problem? It seems to have lost momentum. Instead of really developing the storyline further, you have Del Rio and Ricardo mocking what Colter and Swagger are doing and the WWE investing more in making Swagger look credible than push the gimmick. The gimmick can get stale fast. I feel this thing needs a really big segment. If they want to be edgy and get people talking about this, they have to want to push the envelope. This is not a situation where one person is blatantly being taken advantage of to put over someone that is having trouble getting over. This storyline is meant to get people talking and create a big title feud for Wrestlemania. Last year's title feud between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan was rather dry, but this one definitely has more of a storyline to it. There is still time to deliver hard, but they need to do more than just have Swagger beat people and say his line during Colter's repetitive promos.

Alberto Del Rio, on the other hand, is connecting well with the fans. For a face turn that came randomly, he is playing the role well enough to connect with the fans. This is not one of those feuds where they need to go overboard to humiliate him. I still think they can aim more at Mexico, or any other foreign country or politician that does not have the same philosophy the heels in this storyline are pushing. The storyline is getting too stale. I don't think it will hurt Del Rio, but it may not deliver as best as it could for Swagger.