The “Blue Brand” is going to undergo a massive overhaul after this Sunday’s Extreme Rules PPV. As of right now Smackdown has both mid-card championships and has the potential to end up with zero World championships… The easy solution is to have either Sheamus or Wade Barret drop their title to Kofi Kingston this Sunday, and to give Christian the World Heavyweight title. Whether that’s how things will go down or not, we’ll find out in a few days. Right now we can talk about what we do know, which is a heck of a lot…
Randy Orton is now the biggest superstar on Smackdown. Whether he will be used in the title picture or even pushed as the leader of the brand, he is the most over guy on the roster and will remain that way no matter who is champion. That brings us to a sticky situation, as they could go one of two ways with the Viper… Do they keep him as this in-between face character that crosses the line whenever he gets pissed off, or do the go full-blown heel/face with him? Making him the top face would be easy, as he’s already got the fans completely behind him. But Orton isn’t intersting as a baby face. He never has been, and likely never will be. He’s a cold-blooded killer that ends careers for fun, and I have no interest watching him be the next merch-slinging, movie making John Cena of Friday nights. I would much rather turn him back into a monster, forsake the fans, and let him go back to training up this man…
Cody Rhodes may not have switched brands, but he is now in contention for the top heel spot on Smackdown. His character has been transforming by the week, and he plays his part so well you actually think he’s gone crazy. Maybe Randy Orton should see something in him that he overlooked the first time. Maybe Cody reminds Orton of himself at a young age and wants to show him how to be the violent “apex predator” that is buried deep inside. Rhodes got slighted the first time the two paired up, and DiBiase wound up getting a 5-second push that ultimately went nowhere. As much as Smackdown is in need of a top face, Orton and Rhodes may have an opportunity to re-create something as good as Evolution.
Ted DiBiase was the third member of Legacy. Remember that group that Orton lead on Raw that ultimately fell apart and led to the speculation of who had the brightest future? Well, it’s a year later and Rhodes is the breakout star while DiBiase hasn’t been seen in months. Bring in the Million Dollar Man, Dustry Rhodes, and maybe even Cowboy Bob Orton and you could have the Legacy that should have dominated the WWE last year. Or you let Ted wander around Superstars aimlessly for another six months and let a potentially great superstar go without a fight…
The Usos are still employed? Who knew… It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Samoans, and I thought the Usos were a fantastic tag team when they first made their debut on Raw. I was all for them beating the Hart Dynasty for the straps, but I guess Vince didn’t understand their gimmick and they wound up sitting backstage doing nothing for the better part of this year. Here’s to hoping the move to Friday nights will lead to them getting some actual television time…
Daniel Bryan and Sheamus are two guys I’m worried about. They are completely different superstars that seem to be struggling with the same issue… They’re not really being used to their fullest potential. Sheamus is the current United States champion, but it’s really only a matter of time before he loses it to Raw. Daniel Bryan will have a lot of athletic guys to work with on the blue brand, but there’s no promise he’ll actually get time to show his stuff. Bryan is an extraordinary talent, but he’s a Ring of Honor style worker that doesn’t fit the mold of Vince McMahon’s “superstar”. The clock is ticking for DB, and I sincerely hope I’m wrong… Sheamus, on the other hand, will bounce back. It may take some time and he may lose all credibility as a monster heel in the process, but he’ll main event again one day. I’d put money on it.
Sin Cara has made the move to Smackdown…where he should have started. I understand that he’s a huge foreign talent and they wanted to promote him on the flagship show, but if he can’t get through a match without needing the magical touch of post-production, he shouldn’t be on Raw. That is in no way a knock against Sin Cara’s ability or future in the WWE. I’ve said it before, it’s the WWE’s own fault for pushing a talent that hasn’t been given the proper time to learn how to work the WWE style of wrestling W-ing. Smackdown gives him all the tools he needs to succeed. If they need to redo a spot, they can. If they need to scrap an opponent and start all over again, they can. Eventually Sin Cara will get it (and by get it, I mean he’ll subdue his actual ability and learn how to be generic) and he’ll work high-profile matches.
The rest of the Smackdown roster is pretty much Christian and the Corre. I’m not sure how I feel about Christian as the World Heavyweight champion, and I’m betting that Vince feels the same way right now. He was probably banking on using Edge to build up Christian into a credible threat, and then letting him have a chance with the belt, keeping Edge on backup just incase it didn’t exactly work out. Now all the safeguards are gone; Edge has retired and Alberto del Rio has left for Raw, leaving Christian as the only guy in the title picture. I have an open mind, but don’t be shocked when Christian wins the belt only to drop it a month later (ala Jeff Hardy) to Randy Orton or Wade Barrett.
For the first time in a very long time, I really feel like the draft left us with a sense of chaos. Organized chaos is good. It means things have really been mixed up and the fans don’t immediately know where the product is heading. The door is open for a lot of Smackdown guys to step up and be the future, while Raw holds its place at the top of the wrestling industry. But Raw has a lot room for young talent as well, with John Cena now the only high profile veteran working the ropes on a weekly basis… The landscape of the WWE has indeed changed, and 2011 could actually be…different.
Follow Mike Killam on Twitter @killeReview.
