Update on The Shield's Backstage Heat, Argument with Randy Orton

There is currently heat on The Shield, which may explain why the group has recently fallen down the card.

In this week's (subscribers only) F4W Newsletter, Bryan Alvarez writes there have been various issues with the group over the last couple of months, most notably when Roman Reigns got into a loud backstage argument with Randy Orton over a screwed up spot in a match:

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There was heat on the Shield in recent weeks. It was said that Rollins and Reigns were the two the office was upset with... Another WWE source said the issue with Reigns was that there was a house show tag match which Reigns and Randy Orton were in, and they botched up a spot and got into a shouting match about it backstage. A guy in Reigns' spot arguing with a guy in Randy Orton's spot is a great way to get massive heat on you.

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Interestingly, Alvarez goes on to note that this ended up causing a power struggle of sorts backstage, with Vince McMahon and Triple H having different ideas about how to handle the situation.

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Regardless of what happened, we were told that there was a power struggle of sorts in that Vince McMahon wanted people punished and Triple H didn't want them punished, so he was fighting to keep them strong on TV.

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The story about the team facing issues with management and their fellow wrestlers isn't exactly new, but it is the first time specifics have come out. Ex-WWE writer Court Bauer claimed this recently on Live Audio Wrestling too. He noted that various people backstage had complained to him about Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Reigns “taking themselves and their gimmick too seriously.”

Like so many younger stars before them who were called up and promptly received big pushes and instant stardom, it seems Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns have been accused of developing egos and forgetting etiquette.  

Clearly, something is up with the group.

They went from main eventing Raw and SmackDown regularly to being thrown into matches with the Usos and even losing. While their credibility hasn't been ruined, they don't feel like the big deal that they used to be.

This is not only bad news for them, but for Raw. Without those guys running amok, WWE TV doesn't seem nearly as edgy as it once did.