WWE Analysis: How the Last Four Months Have Hurt the WWE

The main event card for WrestleMania is going to earn the event a phenomenal amount of buys. However, Vince McMahon and the rest of World Wrestling Entertainment need to look forward to the future before the past comes back to bite them.

Any Internet smark knows that he and the rest of the Internet have begged their beloved wrestling business to bring back the "Attitude Era." For several years, fans have wanted nothing more than to see the Rock in action. Fans petitioned for Kane to wear his mask and return to being the brutal monster he once was. Chris Jericho has returned (twice), and the Undertaker only shows up to wrestle once a year. In the wise words of the Miz...

Really?

The WWE has done a horrible job of pushing young stars to the main event scene since these "Attitude Era" wrestlers have came back to the squared circle, and if Chris Jericho and the other blasts from the past continue to get more TV time, the rest of the roster will continue to get buried. I'm going to read you a list of current superstars who were among the top five in 2011 (in terms of popularity), and compare it to the list of wrestlers getting the spotlight.

Big Names of 2011

John Cena (34)

Alberto Del Rio (34)

CM Punk (33)

The Miz (31)

Randy Orton (31)

The list looks magnificent, as the superstars listed above average a little over 32 years old. John Cena was still the company's golden boy until CM Punk took that role from him at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. Alberto Del Rio and the Miz had unique yet charismatic gimmicks that could draw tons of heat, and they could also put on a good show in terms of in-ring ability. Randy Orton turned away from his heel roots in 2011 and became the face of SmackDown (no pun intended).

Each superstar had their own backstory that even the average WWE fan knew and either adored or despised. However, that has disappeared with the roster adding familiar faces.

Big Names of 2012

Triple H (42)

Chris Jericho (41)

The Rock (39)

John Cena (34)

CM Punk (33)

The addition of the first three men listed puts their average age barely under 38 years old. It's a shame that the Undertaker is a honorable mention, even in the condition he's in at 46. The Rock, Triple H and Y2J (with the "itbegins2012" vignettes) have been on television on a regular basis for the past four months and it has stunted the growth of their next generation of superstars. The WWE has mid-to upper-carders who would make marvelous main-eventers given time, such as:

Dolph Ziggler (31)

Kofi Kingston (30)

Daniel Bryan (30)

Jack Swagger (29)

Cody Rhodes (26)

It seems apparent that the Rock, Chris Jericho, the Undertaker and Kane will either be irrelevant or long gone after they receive their WrestleMania paychecks. If the WWE continues to drag on the "New Attitude Era with Old Faces" after WrestleMania, they will be spending a lot of their efforts reviving these young wrestlers' careers and gimmicks.

Easier said than done.