John Cena Leaving WWE: Potential Injury Throws Wrench in WWE's Plans

Brock Lesnar has some explaining to do.

His recklessness and lack of restraint in the loss to John Cena at WWE Extreme Rules has severely impacted the entire sport.

Cena is the face of WWE, the most polarizing figure in the entire company. Nobody draws a bigger crowd reaction. Nobody sells more t-shirts. Nobody promotes the company better.

So when WWE.com “reports” that Cena suffered a shoulder injury that will keep him out of action for awhile, you have to be concerned as a fan. There is no way WWE wanted this to happen.

With Chris Jericho’s bizarre return coming to an end in the next few months, there really aren’t any compelling storylines right now.

Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan is all but over. CM Punk clearly owns Jericho. The Miz is officially a has-been. The Diva division is a joke, as is Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler. The list goes on and on.

The lack of compelling storylines could have been saved if Cena-Lesnar rolled on. The tensions were high going into their epic match, and after such a bloody affair, WWE could have ridden their coat tails all the way to SummerSlam.

Instead, a new Lesnar feud has to be set up, and the whole process must be reset. WWE is not the same without Cena, and WWE has a 24-hour window to scribble something else up. Monday Night Raw is going to feel rushed, and hopefully it doesn’t end up destroying Lesnar’s return.

Then again, all of this is Lesnar’s fault, so don’t feel bad for him. His multiple gaffes Sunday night in Chicago is the reason Cena and the company are behind the eight ball.

Whether he is seriously hurt or not, Cena has to make a speedy recovery. The sport is riding some incredible popularity right now, and all of that momentum could come to a screeching halt if he misses more than a month.

The heat is on, and all eyes will be on the WWE creative team tonight at Monday Night Raw to see how they put a Band-Aid over this Cena injury debacle. 

Follow Eric Ball on Twitter.