Austin Theory Is Back Already, WWE's US Title Problem, More Raw Takes

The November 14 edition of WWE Raw was focused entirely on the United States Championship following the disaster of Austin Theory's failed cash-in the previous week.

Seth Rollins opened the show as both Bobby Lashley and Mustafa Ali confronted him. The U.S. titleholder then fought Finn Bálor in the main event to retain his belt, but Theory attacked him afterward.

With so many challenging for the championship, its future looks relatively bright, though there are some concerns about whether anyone can stand out next to Rollins.

This show set the stage for the future of the United States Championship with plenty of interesting takeaways for the red brand.

US Championship as Top Title on Raw Has an Expiration Date

Seth Rollins is trying to do what Bobby Lashley attempted before him by making the United States Championship appear to be the top title on Raw.

However, there is too much history tied to the title as a secondary championship that it can never be the top belt without somehow elevating decades of mismanagement that defined it previously.

The more likely goal is to hold out for Roman Reigns to drop the WWE Championship and separating Raw and SmackDown's world titles again.

In the meantime, it will matter more to make the U.S. title look good on Raw than at any pay-per-view. USA Network executives will care more about the presentation on the television show they are funding.

Rollins will continue to put on great matches with plenty of rivals on the horizon. From Mustafa Ali to Bobby Lashley to Austin Theory, everyone is fair game to help build up this television championship as the temporary gold standard of the red brand.

WWE Running Out of Time to Reestablish Mustafa Ali

It feels like months since Mustafa Ali main-evented Raw and took out Seth Rollins. But it has been just four weeks, and the United States champion is already moving on to different challengers.

Ali is falling down the ranks in the title picture. While he has a chance in the World Cup Tournament on SmackDown, he will likely lose his first-round match with Ricochet.

This will leave him waiting his turn to fight Rollins, who is growing beyond Ali with each week. WWE is running out of time to make the 36-year-old feel special again.

Before long, Ali will return to the background. As talented as he is, he cannot change people's perception of him if all he does is lose the big matches. He has been losing to Bobby Lashley for years with little hope of an endgame.

Time to Reunite The Hurt Business Is Now

Bobby Lashley is struggling to keep himself together without support. While he can beat anyone one-on-one, he could use friends to calm his anger and back him up.

Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander cannot find a way to win but are capable performers. They have not been the same since The Hurt Business disbanded in August.

Both have recently appeared more on Raw, indicating there is a plan for Benjamin and Alexander in the works. The easiest move would be to reform a stable that never should have broken up.

WWE needs more unique groups to set up fresh stories. A heel Hurt Business could dominate Raw almost at the level of The Bloodline on SmackDown.

This is one group that never got its due, and Lashley would only continue to rise in the rankings with loyal allies at his side.

Austin Theory Will Rebound Quickly with Complete Gimmick Change

Austin Theory's cash-in on Raw one week ago was woeful, but WWE has attempted to show support for A-Town by giving him a new focus. And his anger is growing out of control following his embarrassing loss.

While there is no easy way to explain why WWE had to get rid of the Money in the Bank briefcase for this evolution, it seems the company has not abandoned a 25-year-old talent who has been highlighted heavily over the past year.

If the coming weeks can push Theory to be more serious, he could grow into a far more believable upper-midcard star than he was earlier this year.

While it's not all that impressive to beat up Dolph Ziggler, he would have been outright beaten by The Showoff to continue his spiral at another time. Instead, Theory showed some personality and a spark to be further explored.

In the Vince McMahon era, booking like Theory suffered in his failed cash-in would have tanked his career for months or years. Perhaps Triple H will show a better focus in keeping talent relevant following such devastating losses.