SmackDown Stacks Roster, Lesnar vs. Lashley at WWE Crown Jewel, More Quick Takes

In a relatively short span of time, SmackDown has gone from one of WWE's worst weekly outings to a breath of fresh air thanks to all of the exciting additions to the roster recently.

The last week alone saw Bray Wyatt, LA Knight and Santos Escobar all join the blue brand's ranks. Rey Mysterio has also officially been moved from Mondays to Fridays, which wisely puts his program with Dominik Mysterio on the back-burner until at least WrestleMania season.

Raw hasn't been without its own exciting happenings, most notably the return of Brock Lesnar and the renewal of his rivalry with Bobby Lashley. The two are clearly on a collision course for Crown Jewel and have a chance to produce a much better bout this time around.

Meanwhile in All Elite Wrestling, Daniel Garcia nearly completed his face turn on Wednesday's Dynamite by severing ties with the Jericho Appreciation Society, but in ultimately aiding Chris Jericho to victory, it appears he'll be waiting a little longer to get what he wants: an opportunity at the ROH World Championship.

This installment of Quick Takes will tackle Garcia's not-so-shocking actions, AEW's incomprehensible use of FTR and Wardlow, SmackDown's roster depth, and more.

Bray Wyatt, LA Knight and Santos Escobar Bolster SmackDown's Roster Depth

Following the toll that the 2021 WWE draft took on it, SmackDown struggled for nearly a year to fill its two hours productively. The roster depth was nearly nonexistent, and there weren't enough engaging characters and storylines to make the show worthwhile.

Its quality didn't infinitely improve overnight once Triple H took over, but the gradual change has been noticeable. The biggest issue with SmackDown was its depleted roster, but the recent additions of several promising prospects and notable names will help with that.

Bray Wyatt being exclusive to Friday nights going forward, per Mike Johnson of PWInsider, is a big boost to the blue brand. WWE needed more main event players with Roman Reigns now working a part-time schedule and there's no need for the returning Superstar to be contending for a title anyway.

SmackDown has also gained two stars on the rise in LA Knight and Santos Escobar. The former ditching his shtick as Max Dupri couldn't have happened sooner, while the latter is future world champion material if he can stay the course.

Giving these three the spotlight they have long deserved is a great choice on WWE's part and will only strengthen SmackDown in the long run.

Rey Mysterio's Move to SmackDown Perfectly Prolongs Program with Dominik

It was just over a month ago that Dominik Mysterio betrayed his father Rey, but the two of them had been at odds with The Judgment Day for a lot longer than that.

Both father and son have played their roles exceptionally well throughout their recent rivalry, with Dominik in particular exceeding expectations with his performances. That said, to drag it out any further would have been overkill if the idea is to hold off on their first one-on-one match until WrestleMania 39.

Six more months of Dominik making life miserable for his dad would have gotten tiresome very quickly, so the decision to shift Rey to SmackDown in the meantime is a brilliant call.

The 47-year-old has spent most of his latest run in WWE on Raw, but his career has always been synonymous with SmackDown. On his first night back, he won a Fatal 4-Way to become the No. 1 contender to the Intercontinental Championship.

Mysterio vs. Gunther has the potential to be an absolute blast, but it will merely scratch the surface of what more Rey can do on Friday nights with a wide variety of potential opponents.

AEW Can't Wait Too Long to Cement Daniel Garcia's Babyface Turn

AEW has largely been in reset mode since the events of All Out, and with each passing week, Dynamite has only gotten better. The latest episode proved that, though Daniel Garcia reestablishing his alliance with the Jericho Appreciation Society didn't leave most fans overly enthused.

All signs seemed to point to Garcia cementing his split from Chris Jericho ahead of Full Gear where they could collide for the ROH World Championship. Garcia has been very over with the audience as of late, and AEW would be foolish to not run with that.

As disappointing as it is that we won't be getting that great moment just yet, Jericho having more of an extended run as Ring of Honor world champion is more important.

To his credit, the 51-year-old has been doing some of his strongest work in AEW to date in his current role. Facing former ROH world champs every other week is an awesome hook for viewers and will result in a handful of wonderful matches for the veteran and fans alike.

Through it all, the endgame remains the same: Garcia dethroning Jericho as ROH world champion. The key will be to not wait too long to where fans don't care to see him turn anymore and to ensure that subtle story is still being told in the background until it can reach its climax.

FTR and Wardlow's Lack of Meaningful Direction Is Inexcusable

At a time when AEW could use more compelling storylines, it's baffling that beloved stars such as FTR and Wardlow aren't currently involved in anything of importance.

These are organically-over talents fans want to tune in to see, but their lack of consistent presence on the program makes that difficult. It doesn't help that they have been spinning their wheels for months, and there has been no indication that will be changing in the foreseeable future.

FTR are, arguably, the greatest tag team in the world today, yet their gimmick in holding gold from three different companies hasn't amounted to much on AEW TV. Instead, they've largely been relegated to Rampage and facing Ring of Honor teams the AEW audience has no incentive to care about.

Wardlow is a more egregious example considering he was AEW's hottest prospect heading into Double or Nothing in May. The aftermath was horribly handled, rendering his reign as AEW TNT champion irrelevant.

Reuniting The Pinnacle to a certain degree (including Shawn Spears but without MJF) is fine for now, but with how popular they continue to be despite their abysmal booking, it's inexcusable for them to not be prioritized more than they are.

Bobby Lashley Is Logical Next Opponent for Brock Lesnar

Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley was one of the WWE Universe's biggest dream matches for years, and it finally came to fruition at the Royal Rumble this year.

Unfortunately, the long-awaited encounter failed to live up to the hype. Not only did it have a strange and lackluster layout, but the interference from Roman Reigns at the end also overshadowed Lashley pinning Lesnar to regain the WWE Championship.

The Beast Incarnate being busy with Reigns in the six months that followed didn't allow him to revisit his rivalry with Lashley, at least until now.

Lesnar exacted revenge by attacking The All Mighty last week on Raw, effectively costing him the United States title against Seth Rollins. The stage is set for them to meet again at Crown Jewel on November 5 and redeem themselves with a hard-hitting, thrilling battle.

After losing in decisive fashion to Reigns at SummerSlam, Lesnar's future with WWE was in doubt with there not being an obvious next opponent for him. However, Lashley makes perfect sense given their unfinished business and how he can easily endure a loss to The Beast at this point.

Crown Jewel already has a main event in Reigns vs. Logan Paul, but adding Lesnar vs. Lashley II as an attraction match automatically makes the event must-see.

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Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.