WWE: Fact: There Is a Population Problem in the Company

While watching RAW this past week, I was struck by a notion that has now been weighing on my mind for a couple of days.

There are a lot of WWE Superstars.

And I'm not talking about the top guys either, I'm talking about mid-level guys that we only see once in awhile.

It seems that the company is so hell-bent on creating more future stars that they are willing to throw nearly everyone into the mix and give them some TV time.

It seems as if the (possibly) more talented younger guys are getting shafted by the older and more established wrestlers, many of whom have been past their prime for some years.

The trend of giving these guys a push and then burying them has become commonplace, which is a shame for guys like Zack Ryder, Drew McIntyre, and likely Brodus Clay.

Sure, Clay's right in the mix right now, squashing enhancement talent, but what happens when he stops squaring off against those guys and needs to start climbing the ladder against even mid-card talent. Would anyone buy a Brodus Clay/Kofi Kingston angle? Or Clay in a feud with the Miz?

Ryder fought and clawed his way to forcing the company to make him relevant on television. And he was rewarded for it with a brief US title run. Now the company has squashed any momentum he had by having the newly reborn Kane "break his back." But more on Kane in a moment.

McIntyre was "the chosen one." What happened to that?

And given the time needed to establish them, guys like Joe "I'm the son of Mr. Perfect and you made me sound like a Leprechaun" Hennig, Trent Barretta, Curt Hawkins and Tyler Reks could all be fixtures in the company for a long time to come. But they get pushed to performing on Superstars, or jobbing to others slightly more established men.

I would have been behind Tyler Reks as a monster heel. I have would have been behind him as the surfer dude he played in FCW. But watching him get obliterated by the man-mountain that is Brodus Clay did nothing but destroy any thought I had of him as a legitimate "star." The same goes for Hawkins. He could be a great cocky heel, or the type of guy that you root for as a face, much like his former tag team partner, Ryder.

In addition, and as much as it pains me to say it, because I used to find him genuinely entertaining, Chris Jericho has no business being in a wrestling ring anymore. I have no interest in seeing him prance around for what seems like an eternity, teasing the crowds into thinking he's going to do or say something, and then walking out. This is a horrible idea on the part of WWE management, because all it succeeds in doing is making the TV audience change the channel.

And while we're on the subject of aging stars, there's no reason to bring Kane or the Undertaker back. Ever.

Glen Jacobs, the man who plays Kane, is 44 years old. Mark "the Undertaker" Calaway is 46. Both are injured with a fair amount of regularity. They both used to be great performers. Now it's hard to buy into either of them as legitimate threats to any title hunt, as they are now reduced to short term attractions.

Don't get me wrong, I still think it's incredible when that gong sounds and the Undertaker strides slowly to the ring. But anyone that saw him this past week on RAW can clearly see that he is a shell of his former self. Pretty soon they will just start unveiling him at Wrestlemania every year to keep the streak alive. He's as fragile as anyone in the business, and that's sad to see. Once the top guy in the business, now reduced to somewhat of a sideshow character.

We see the same thing every time that Hulk Hogan shows up. We get pumped for three seconds when his music hits and then he comes hobbling down the ramp and all of us just feel sorry for him.

The same can be said for Rey Mysterio...once he heals from what seems to be his tenth surgery in recent memory.

The shelf life of a professional wrestler is short. The talent pool is filled with guys that could make an impact immediately. I understand the loyalty to your top stars (or people who used to be top stars), but the time for action is now.

If I wanted to watch two hours of over the hill wrestlers still trying to make it, I would watch TNA.