Complete Report Card and Predictions Following WWE SmackDown for August 16

Every week here on Bleacher Report, I will take an in-depth look at SmackDown, recapping all of the action, offering analysis, and grading the matches, segments and anything else that takes place on the show, as well as provide some predictions on the direction of storylines heading into SummerSlam.

The final show before SummerSlam gave us plenty of storyline coverage as well as a couple of solid matches to open and close the show.

SummerSlam is almost here, and WWE has done a good job of building all the top feuds while also giving us a card that has the potential to be the pay-per-view of the year.

I am really looking forward to SummerSlam, but for now, let's get into SmackDown with The Wyatt Family opening the show with a promo.

Bray Wyatt's Promo and Segment with Kane

The show started off with Bray Wyatt giving a very good promo to hype his match with Kane one last time before SummerSlam.

Wyatt's ability to silence a crowd might make some people think the live audience doesn't react to them very much, but this is a different kind of silence. This is the kind where people are listening.

Kane attempted to ambush The Wyatt Family by himself, and he even managed to take out Harper and Rowan, and get in some shots to Wyatt, but he was eventually overtaken by the numbers game.

This was a great way to kick off SmackDown, and it helps raise Wyatt's visibility significantly. He might not even need to win at SummerSlam—so long as he has a great performance, he will be remembered.

Grade: A

Some notes from the Promo:

• The Wyatt Family's reaction to Kane's pyro seemed pretty genuine as far as shock level is concerned.
• I predict someone will still be set on fire during or after the Ring of Fire match at SS. Since it is not the way the match needs to end according to the rules, it would make for a more shocking conclusion.

Damien Sandow vs. Christian

Damien Sandow looked very aggressive in the early going, especially with his knee lift that sent Christian from being draped over the top rope to the floor.

The second segment feature more trading of offense between the two, with Christian eventually getting the win with a rollup.

After Sandow attempted a post-match attack, and got a Spear for his troubles, we see Alberto Del Rio attack Christian from behind and then berate him on the mic afterward.

ADR tried to lock in the cross armbreaker, but Christian countered out of nowhere and hit the Killswitch to leave Del Rio laying in the ring.

The match was good, but it was nothing to rant and rave about. Both guys gave a solid performance, and Christian came away from the whole thing looking very strong heading into the PPV.

Grade: B

Some notes from the match:

• Sandow's expression after losing via rollup was hilarious.
• It was only during the shot of Christian after the match that I realized that he is in better shape physique-wise than in the past several years of his career.
• It will be very interesting to see which one of these three men leaves SummerSlam with the world title.

AJ and Layla vs. Natalya and Kaitlyn

This wasn't a bad Divas match, but the crowd's response certainly did nothing to help how it came off on TV.

AJ and Layla picked up the win after AJ nailed Kaitlyn with a Shining Wizard. Natalya looked good in her portion of the match, and Layla has even stepped up her game a bit.

The match was paced a little slower than it should have been given its short length, which is part of the reason it did not get a better grade.

Grade: C-

Some notes from the match:

• During the SmackDown taping I attended recently, there was a girl sitting not far away from me who was wearing something really similar to what Layla wears as a top and ring jacket. It was strange attire for a wrestling show.
• Kaitlyn has recently developed some similarities to John Cena. They both wear street clothes to the ring instead of traditional attire, they both remain in the title scene longer than they should and they both have terrible entrance music.
• The dark hair suits Layla better.

The Shield vs. RVD, Mark Henry and Big Show

RVD took most of the damage for the babyface team in this match, which is to be expected when his partners are Mark Henry and Big Show.

But RVD picked up the win for his team after Big Show nailed Dean Ambrose with the KO punch, and RVD followed up with the Five-Star Frog Splash.

This match was somewhat short and basically gave each guy a chance to spend a couple of minutes in the ring, but it had an ending that popped the crowd—and that helped a bit.

Grade: B-

Some notes from the match:

• I like that Ambrose ditched the tactical vest.
• Seth Rollins' leap over the top rope onto Mark Henry was just plain awesome.
• The fact that RVD pinned Ambrose makes me think that Ambrose will retain in their match at SS.
• This kind of match would have headlined a PPV six months ago.

Miz vs. Jack Swagger

Miz really hasn't had many TV matches recently, and he is the host of SummerSlam, so it was a little weird to hear he would be having a match on the final show before SummerSlam.

Zeb Colter and Antonio Cesaro were booted from ringside, but Miz rolled up Swagger before they could even make it up the ramp for a quick win.

There was nothing wrong with this match, but it is another match that suffers a bit from being short.

Grade: C

Some notes from the match:

• Miz needs to grow back the beard. He looked more mature with it for some reason.
• I am 100 percent positive that seeing Jack Swagger use Miz's butt as a spot to put his hand for push-ups made any child under the age of eight either laugh really hard or get grossed out.
• Zeb Colter really increases his resemblance to a cartoon when he is upset after a loss.

Zack Ryder vs. Curtis Axel

Zack Ryder got in a lot more offense than I would have expected in this match, but he was not able to upset the intercontinental champion.

Seeing how far Ryder has fallen down the ladder is sad. He really is a solid wrestler, and he still gets a great response from the crowd.

This match was very basic and really did not make me care any more about Curtis Axel after seeing him get the win. He isn't on the SummerSlam card, which might be a sign of WWE's faith in him.

Paul Heyman grabbed a mic after a commercial break and gave a promo about CM Punk and Brock Lesnar. He isn't even talking about Axel after his win.  

Grade: C

Some notes from the match:

• A Zack Ryder sighting has to be worth a lot of points on someone's scavenger hunt.
• I never thought Ryder would outdo the ridiculousness of his half trunks/half tights, but he did it with his attire in this match.
• I really would have liked to see the reaction Ryder received during his entrance.

Daniel Bryan vs. Wade Barret (No DQ Match)

There are bound to be people who complain about Vince McMahon and Triple H's involvement in this match, but it was a great match that told a story.

Daniel Bryan and Wade Barrett had great chemistry, which is no surprise given how many times they have faced each other.

Triple H celebrating after the match with Bryan certainly makes you wonder if he will be totally neutral as a referee with the WWE title match on Sunday.

Grade: A

Some notes from the match:

• Barrett has to be commended for taking an insane amount of shots from a kendo stick.
• Bryan might be innovative in many of his matches, but he certainly has his "Moves of Doom" just like and top WWE Superstar.

Bryan's moves of doom:

• Running knee to the face of his opponent off the apron.
• A running elbow to the face.
• Kicks to the chest followed by a huge kick to the head, which Bryan hits about half the time.
• A running dropkick to a dazed opponent in the corner followed by another running dropkick to the same guy who is now downed in the corner.
• The Flying Headbutt.
• The Yes Lock.

Renee Young Back Stage Interviews, Final Thoughts and Predictions

WWE's newest backstage interviewer had two backstage interviews during the show. One with RVD, Mark Henry and Big Show, and another with Rybaclk. I separated these from the rest of the show and threw them in the final slide because not a lot happened.

The RVD interview was standard pre-match hype, but Ryback segment was cut short by his anger at someone watching him. Ryback has adopted the mannerisms of every Junior High and High School bully you have ever seen in a movie.

Ryback grabbed some poor backstage worker and knocked him around before tossing him over a table, continuing his streak of attacking backstage employees.

This could lead to something bigger down the line, but for now, it's just strange to see that a guy who was once being pushed to the top has been brought down to this kind of storyline.

This was a pretty good episode of SmackDown to lead into the SummerSlam PPV. Two matches stand out above the rest: Christian vs. Damien Sandow and Daniel Bryan vs. Wade Barrett. Bryan and Barrett probably get Match of the Night honors due to some of the brutality in their match.

Just about every single match set for SummerSlam, as well as a rumored match for the tag team titles, was addressed in one way or another.

Predictions heading into SummerSlam:

• Since RVD pinned Ambrose clean on this show, he will probably lose to the U.S. champ at SummerSlam.
• The Miz will get in some kind of physical altercation at SummerSlam.
• Daniel Bryan will win the WWE title, but he may lose it within a day to Randy Orton.
• Del Rio's time as world champion is over, but is it Christian or Sandow who will walk out with the big gold belt?
• Kane might actually beat Bray Wyatt, but Wyatt will get the last laugh in some way.
• Mark Henry and Big Show will walk out as tag team champions if the match is made with The Shield.

What did you think of the show, and what are your SummerSlam predictions?

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.