Daniel Bryan is back!
It’s been a roller coaster of a year for the 5’10” middleweight from Aberdeen, Washington. After winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in the main event of the biggest WrestleMania in history, Daniel Bryan was taken out of action indefinitely with a series of injuries and surgeries that could have easily ended his career. Ever the underdog, the leader of the “Yes Movement” returned to Monday Night Raw this week in somber state, but in a shock to the masses the King of Beards revealed that he has NO PLANS to retire, and instead announced his intention to compete in the 2015 Royal Rumble match!
I don’t know about you, but after a year full of heartbreak and uncertainty, that was exactly the end to 2014 I needed.
Before we get too excited, I do feel the need to address the 265-pound goat in the room.
The plan, according to virtually every reputable news site (and common sense) is for Roman Reigns to win the Royal Rumble. The plan has been, basically since August, that Roman Reigns will go on to WrestleMania and defeat Brock Lesnar to establish himself as the new world champion, and the “next big thing” in the WWE.
If the all-knowing “powers that be” think the fans – and especially the hardcore fans in a town like Philadelphia – will readily accept Roman Reigns winning the Rumble match after this week’s Raw, they deserve what is absolutely certain to happen on January 25th.
It was one thing to boo Batista out of Pittsburgh. I’m sure that’s not the way management wanted his big return to go, but Batista is a natural bad guy, and changing plans for the WrestleMania main event (thank you, CM Punk) ended up being a very easy process. ‘
Reigns is supposed to become this massive babyface. He’s basically the modern version of 1984 Arnold Schwarzenegger – cool enough for guys to love him, sexy enough for ladies to drool over him. Arnold couldn’t talk either, but everyone turned up for the release of The Terminator.
WWE thinks they have a license to print money in Roman. Maybe they do. Without Bryan in the picture, there really is no better option than booking him against Lesnar at WrestleMania. Is he ready? No. Would he be ready by 2016? Maybe. Unfortunately, they don’t have the luxury of running this angle next year. It’s now or never; Brock’s going back to real fighting, says the rumor mill.
Reigns has no physical drawbacks, and is confident enough in the ring to perform with top names and produce good-to-great matches, given the right opponents. He just can’t talk. I’ve seen flashes of greatness in him, like when he confidently flirts with Renee Young or plays to the women in the audience. OBVIOUSLY he’s got sex appeal going for him – put a mop on The Rock’s head and they could be cousins. But Dwayne is the best talker the business has ever seen. You’ve got to run both sides to operate at that level for any significant length of time.
The funny thing is, Daniel Bryan has neither. He’s passable on the mic, but you’re never going to see him doing John Cena’s media tour, working every morning show, sports cast and magazine cover the company can throw at him. That face does not belong on billboards. People love Bryan because he’s the underdog. He’s arguably the best pro wrestler on the planet, but there’s no actual data that proves wrestling can sell.
So what’s WWE to do here? The only chance Reigns had at being accepted by the WWE Universe flew out the window the moment Daniel Bryan announced his comeback.
If Reigns wins the Rumble, it’s 2014 all over again.
If Bryan wins the Rumble, he’s in the main event of WrestleMania for the second year in a row. The company loses “their” main event, and is forced to go with the guy they don’t like, on their most important show, against a monster he probably won’t match up well against.
Seth Rollins vs. Daniel Bryan is a much better choice, but not for the main event of WrestleMania. It might go on last, but it wouldn’t be the real main event.
Brock vs. Roman means a whole lot less if the title isn’t on the line. A win for Reigns is just another win without the title. Albeit the biggest one of his career, it’s still just a win.
They’ve backed themselves into a corner here. Bryan has to win. There’s ONE person fans would rather see at WrestleMania, and he just signed a multi-fight deal with the UFC.
I guess that’s not the worst option. Bryan never did get his run with the title. Winning at 31 would basically hit the “rewind” button, setting things up the way they could have been in 2014, if he never had neck surgery.
Roman could go back into the rotation, getting that extra time he needs to work on his promos. Maybe his moment won’t be some giant spectacle in the main event of WrestleMania, but that might be better than rushing him into a spot he’s not ready for yet.
What do you think?
WHO SHOULD BE IN THE MAIN EVENT AT WRESTLEMANIA 31?
IS ROMAN REIGNS READY TO BE THE NEXT FACE OF WWE?
Sound off. Comments section. You know the drill…
