7 Legends Who Should Return to WWE

The WWE is busy these days trying to create new stars, but just because the company is looking toward the future, that doesn't mean it should totally ignore the past.

While the WWE obviously has some established veterans who are helping carry the the company and some up-and-coming stars looking do the same, it can still look back in its history to find some major names that could do the same.

Now, I'm not saying that the WWE should bring in a boatload of wrestlers to try to improve the company. But bringing in a handful to help turn the company's future around certainly couldn't hurt.

There are plenty of legends and Hall of Famers out there who could improve the quality of WWE programming.

Let's take a look at seven of those legends who should return to the WWE.

NOTE: I'm not including The Rock because, by all accounts, he's already under contract to the WWE and will be returning in the future.

7. JBL

You've probably heard a lot about JBL heading back to the WWE lately.

He's working on a project in which he's going to place a WWE flag on the highest peak of all seven continents, and according to WrestlingNewsWorld.com, he "has a deal in place" to come back to the WWE, although it's unclear if that deal has been signed.

Either way, though, I would really like this decision. A lot.

At least in my view, JBL is one of the best heels in recent WWE history. He's a phenomenal mic worker and a great character who simply knows how to make people hate him.

Even more, JBL is a very good commentator, as evidenced by his time on SmackDown from 2006 to 2007.

He's a multi-talented guy who could return to the WWE and easy slip into a number of roles, such as a manager for an up-and-coming heel, a GM or some type of authority figure, or perhaps even as a commentator again.

No matter what JBL's exact position would be, though, I certainly think that he could help the WWE in a variety of ways.

6. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper

This is "Rowdy" Roddy Piper's most recent appearance on WWE programming (before Monday, that is), and unsurprisingly, I enjoyed the hell out of it.

Although Piper really had no role whatsoever in what was happening with AJ and Daniel Bryan, he snuck his nose into the middle of it anyway and performed incredibly well in the process.

That certainly shouldn't come as much of a shocker, though.

Piper is one of the—if not the—greatest mic workers in the history of professional wrestling, and he can cut a great promo no matter what the topic.

In his two most recent WWE appearances (the one above and this one with John Cena), he's done a phenomenal job of hyping up two storylines that he wasn't actually involved in.

Now, if Piper could do that, just imagine what he could do as a full-time or even sparingly-used TV character for the WWE.

It's his masterful skills as a promo guy that makes me really want to see Piper in a more permanent role on TV, as I think he could perform well as a face or heel in a number of different on-screen roles.

5. Goldberg

Roughly eight years after Goldberg wrestled his last WWE match, his name keeps popping up in wrestling circles.

There's been a ton of chatter that he could be TNA-bound, and then, there are of course, the notions that TNA's Crimson and the WWE's Ryback are Goldberg rip-offs.

Although I myself don't particularly care much for Goldberg, wrestling fans around the world sure seem to bring his name up a lot lately, and despite whatever problems he and the WWE may have had in the past, you have to think that it's a possibility that Vince McMahon brings him back to the company in the near future.

Now, don't get me wrong—I've never been a huge Goldberg fan and have always questioned his abilities as a wrestler.

But Goldberg is a big-time name in pro wrestling, and with the WWE lacking major stars at the moment, it definitely wouldn't be totally out of the question for him to shock the world and wrestle another WWE match or two.

Right off the bat, potential matches with Brock Lesnar and/or Ryback seem logical.

4. Batista

Batista is one of the very few household names who could return to the WWE, get in the ring and actually put on a decent match.

He's not young, sure. But he's not 60 years old either, and after roughly two years away from wrestling, he might be ready to return to the ring.

In fact, there's been a lot of talk in recent months that Batista is indeed interested in returning to the WWE.

I could see it happening, too.

It's no secret that Vince McMahon hasn't shied away from bringing back part-timers or names from the past recently (Chris Jericho, The Rock, Brock Lesnar, Tensai, etc.), and I've always felt like Batista would eventually head back to the WWE for a retirement tour of sorts.

He's kept himself in excellent shape since leaving the WWE two years ago, and at that time, he was on one of the biggest rolls of his career as a perfectly whiny heel performer.

Although Batista's going to have to get back in the WWE soon if he wants to still put on solid matches, I would certainly love to see him right back where he left off in 2010.

3. Ric Flair

The Ric Flair to WWE rumors have circulated for a while now, gaining considerable steam when Flair appeared at the 2012 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.

The average wrestling fan now sees that Flair could, should and likely will end up in the WWE at some point.

The thing is, no one knows when that point will be.

Flair is at the center of TNA's lawsuit against the WWE, and until all of that drama is settled, I think that Flair is going to remain unsigned by the WWE.

That being said, Flair to WWE is a lock. You can't get it tattooed if you want to.

Flair essentially got himself fired from TNA, the WWE (despite their claims) really wants him and Flair's daughter Ashley recently signed a WWE developmental deal.

Combine all of those factors, and it's clear that "The Nature Boy" is WWE-bound.

I hope to God that he doesn't wrestle in a WWE ring ever again, but thankfully, I don't see that happening.

It's more likely that Flair manages an up-and-coming star or finds himself as some type of on-screen authority figure, two roles which I think he would excel at.

2. Kurt Angle

Kurt Angle himself revealed late last year that he had signed a new three-year contract with TNA, which means that he's locked in until late 2014 at least.

But if there's one thing we've learned about Angle, it's that he changes his tune on things all the time, especially when it comes to the WWE.

He's blasted Vince McMahon's company at times, only to praise them not too long afterward. While it's unclear what his motives are, I've always felt like he's at least trying to leave the door open for a potential WWE return.

I'd love to see it happen, too.

Even in his early 40s, Angle is still one of the very best all-around performers in the business, and it's almost a shame to see his talents wasted away in a company that isn't going anywhere.

Every time that one of Angle's TNA contracts has run up, I've hoped and prayed that he would choose to sign with the WWE instead.

That obviously hasn't happened yet, but you never say never in the wrestling.

If Angle could get a part-time contract like the one that Brock Lesnar has (or that other major names have had at times), I could definitely see him going back to the WWE.

After all, potentially epic feuds and matches with guys like Dolph Ziggler, Daniel Bryan and CM Punk are awaiting him there.

1. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin might very well be the second biggest star in professional wrestling history (behind Hulk Hogan, of course).

It's absolutely crazy to think that his last WWE match took place nearly a decade ago in 2003, but here we are in 2012 and Austin has insisted that he could get back in the ring again.

Time and time again, Austin has said that—with the right circumstances—he'd be willing to wrestle one more match.

Of course, we've seen the Twitter exchanges between Austin and CM Punk that now has many clamoring for a match between the two at WrestleMania 29.

My thoughts on that potential match? Hell yeah.

"Stone Cold" knows his body better than anyone else, and even though he's shied away from his own claim that he'd like for his final match to take place against Punk, I'm not going to question him if he thinks he can get in the ring one more time.

No matter who the opponent would be, I, like many other fans, want to see Austin back in the ring for one last match.

I'm not sure if it's going to happen or not, but I'm holding out hope that it will.

Drake Oz is a WWE Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. You can follow him onTwitter and ask him any wrestling-related questions on Formspring.