WWE Raw: Zack Ryder and 5 Changes He Needs to Make Right Now

I like Zack Ryder. I really do. He is a good talent inside the ring. He has charisma, and his fans are extremely loyal. You can't really ask for much more in this business.

Sadly, things are not going so well for him as of late on Monday nights. Some of that may fall on him, while some may not. Blame who you choose, but since winning the United States title, his last month has been tough to watch.

Here are a few changes I am suggesting to get him back on the right track!

5. Who Is the United States Champion?

Quick pop quiz!

Without looking it up, tell me who his last opponent was on Raw in a singles match...

Anything yet? No? Still?

You see my point. This man is the United States champion, and he is doing nothing with it. The former champion (Dolph Ziggler) is clearly above the title and is already in a WWE Championship match at the Royal Rumble.

Ryder, the man who defeated him at TLC, is feuding with...Kane? Jack Swagger? I don't know. All I know is his title is doing nothing but collecting dust.

4. Get Away from Eve

I am a big fan of Eve. She has improved a ton in the last year, and watching her every Monday night is great. However, being involved with Zack Ryder?

No thanks.

I do not mind "love stories" in WWE. Some are fun, while others can be terrible. In this case, I do not see anything coming between the two.

Keep Eve with the divas, and let Ryder be on his own.

3. Too Much Each Week

It does not matter if you are a huge fan of Ryder.

It does not matter if you are a casual fan of Ryder.

The man has been on WWE TV way too much the past month or so. Yes, there is such a thing as being on "too much" when trying to get over with an audience, especially in main events you do not belong in.

This has clearly been the case. I will never forget his near 30-minute-long segment to open the second hour of Raw over a month ago. Wow! You add on his small role with SmackDown, and you just get a lot of one guy a week. Sad, but true!

Do I even have to mention his track record with ratings?

I wrote about him back on November 9th, 2011. Over two months ago, I saw this coming...

I covered his status with ratings again on November 25th, 2011. Again, it did not surprise me.

Uh oh! Here was my analysis from a December 6th, 2011 article on him and Raw numbers.

A few weeks later was the infamous "lowest overrun of the year" main event with all the new champions.

Finally, a report from this week says his segment with Eve was the lowest-rated "in perhaps a decade."

As usual, I cover ratings for a reason folks! Numbers do not lie...

2. Time off Is Needed

This goes back to my last point. Ryder has been on so much that time off WWE TV may be the best thing for him right now. What happens to his title is anybody's guess. He wasn't doing anything with it anyways, so stripping him of it may work.

Kane and John Cena do not need him in their feud. He is doing nothing, so having a "big" return in a month could be fun. Plus, it would give him some momentum heading into WrestleMania.

Furthermore, this report seems to suggest keeping Ryder off WWE TV to sell the Kane attack from Raw. That makes sense to me. It works on a few levels and could benefit Ryder in the long run.

1. Are You Serious Bro?

I wrote about this nearly two months ago. It still rings true!

He needs to be a serious competitor.

That does not mean totally changing his personality. He can keep his merchandise. His hair could probably go back to its old color, but I understand he is trying to hide his "balding hair line."

Again, he can crack jokes. Some of the best have a sense of comedy to them. The Rock, Stone Cold, John Cena and others all are funny. It is not a bad thing.

However, being a Santino Marella-like character is not what I want to see. We already have The Cobra every week. We don't need to see another "goofball" on Raw. Santino has that role down perfectly.

The best run Ryder ever had was back in late November until TLC. He was a legitimate performer. He wanted the United States Championship from Dolph. He cared about wins and losses. Nothing was going to stop him from achieving his goal.

Since he won the title, it has been the usual lines: playing with his Flipcam; making jokes; acting ridiculous backstage around Eve. All of that is fine, but not every week.

You are a champion in the biggest wrestling company in the world. Act like it.

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