WWE: 7 Ways Ryback Can Be Taken More Seriously

Ryback has waltzed his way through the WWE so far, and barring something unforeseen happening, it seems like a lock that he'll continue to do so.

It's clear that the creative team is firmly behind him, as evidenced by the massive push he's received and the fact that he's still yet to lose a match.

No one can be totally sure just how far Ryback will go in the WWE, but given that the company lacks top babyfaces (beyond John Cena, Sheamus and Randy Orton), I'd say that he has a fantastic chance of becoming the No. 4 good guy in the not-so-distant future.

In order to do that, though, Ryback has to start changing things up a bit. He needs to do some things that can help him shed the Goldberg comparisons and continue to make the "Feed me more!" chants grow.

Here are seven way Ryback can be taken more seriously.

7. Put Him in Some Tag Team Matches

At least so far, Ryback's matches have typically been two-on-one handicap matches against local enhancement workers or short squashes against WWE midcarders or lower-card workers.

In other words, Ryback consistently flies solo. So, how about doing something different with him by putting him in a tag team match here and there?

Doing this could help Ryback stop some of those Goldberg chants because I think that a big reason why those chants still happen is that he's constantly squashing other stars in one-on-one matches.

By changing things up a bit and having Ryback team up with some other over babyfaces in tag team matches, he could distance himself from the "Goldberg" chants and be portrayed more like the WWE's other popular faces, who team up with each other all the time.

Also, putting Ryback in tag team bouts would allow him to gain more experience in different match types because—let's face it—he's not going to be able to squash people or have singles matches forever.

He's going to need to team up with other babyfaces at some point, and he probably reached that point a while ago.

6. Have Him Show Some Vulnerability

Ryback has been on the main roster for six months, but he's shown very little vulnerability so far.

He hasn't really been challenged by any of his opponents (aside from maybe that random match with Jack Swagger), he doesn't sell very much for anybody, and he's never really been in danger of losing a match.

If that goes on for too long, Ryback is going to become just like John Cena: Booked to be so indestructible that the fans start to turn on him.

No one in the WWE wants that to happen, but in order to ensure that it doesn't, Ryback has to show some sort of vulnerability, both during his matches and within his storylines.

He is going to have to overcome some obstacles that will give us a reason to have that babyface sympathy for him and shower him with cheers when he walks into an arena.

If Ryback is never vulnerable or never has any real challenges, we will have no reason to take him seriously. He'll just become another unstoppable babyface in a WWE that already has a few of them.

5. Expand His Move Set

Now more than ever, WWE stars are widely criticized for what fans see as limited move sets that often feature only a handful of moves.

This is kind of ridiculous because every WWE star, past and present, has had a move set, but that doesn't change the fact that superstars should always be looking to expand their move sets and bring something new to the table.

That's especially true for Ryback.

Since he's been limited with his time in the ring so far, he's also shown what appears to be a rather limited move set. It's too early for a final verdict on this, but judging by what we've seen so far, he's not going to have a wide arsenal of moves like some other stars have.

Now, don't get me wrong: I'm not asking or expecting Ryback to become the best wrestler on the planet. But expanding his move set at least a little bit would help him be seen as someone who's more than just a squash artist.

Instead, he'll start being viewed as a big man with some actual versatility. 

4. Associate Himself with Other Top Stars

When you were in grammar school and saw a fellow classmate hanging out with the "cool" kids, you probably thought to yourself, "Oh, he must be pretty cool too."

As crazy as this may sound, you can actually apply that logic to the WWE. If you see a rising WWE star associating himself with other top stars, chances are that you're much more likely to think of him as a top star as well.

For example, if we see Ryback interacting with John Cena, Sheamus or Randy Orton on a consistent basis, we'll probably begin to think that Ryback is a big deal, that he sort of "belongs" with the WWE's top babyfaces.

This isn't something that's difficult for the WWE to do, either. A backstage segment involving Ryback and someone like Cena here and there or maybe a random tag team match every once in a while, and just like that, the fans begin to associate Ryback with the top names in the industry.

If Ryback looks like he belongs at the top and is treated like he does by guys like Cena, the fans will follow suit and begin to view Ryback as one of the WWE's biggest stars.

3. Longer Matches

This is rather self-explanatory.

Up until this point in his WWE career, Ryback's matches have generally lasted only a few minutes or less. In fact, I'm not sure that any match he's ever had has lasted more than five minutes.

That's gotta change. Soon.

Squash matches are fine for debuting WWE superstars, but the longer they last, the more the fans begin to think: "There must be a reason why he only wrestles squash matches. He must not be good enough to have long ones."

Even if that isn't true, that's the association that many WWE fans will make, which is why it's absolutely imperative that Ryback move on from his two-, three- or four-minute matches and start working bouts that last seven, eight, 10 minutes or longer.

That way, Ryback can (hopefully) show that he's able to do more than just squash his opponents and that he can actually tell a story in the ring.

2. Tougher Competition

Ryback's toughest competition so far? Jinder Mahal.

Yes, the same Jinder Mahal who has spent much of the last year as a jobber and is not exactly recognized as one of the WWE's premiere midcarders.

Ryback can beat all the Jinder Mahals, the Stan Stanskys or the Arthur Rosenbergs that he wants, but—let's just be honest with ourselves here—none of those victories are really impressing anybody.

That's why the creative team has to give Ryback some tougher competition, and why it has to do so immediately. In fact, it appears that the WWE is doing just that by seemingly kicking off a feud between Ryback and The Miz on Monday's Raw.

This has been long overdue because Ryback has spent the first five-plus months of his WWE career beating local enhancement talent and forgotten WWE stars, which hasn't really done much to help his credibility.

But beating some WWE superstars with some actual name value will do more for Ryback than any number of squash matches ever would.

1. Beat The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship

As noted in the last slide, the WWE seemingly ignited a feud between The Miz and Ryback on this week's Raw. 

My expectation is now that Ryback will go on to challenge The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship and beat him for it, which will likely happen at next month's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view.

Now, that's booking I can get on board with.

Like him or not, The Miz is a very credible WWE Superstar who has built up an impressive resume. He's a former WWE, United States and WWE Tag Team Champion, Money in the Bank winner and the current Intercontinental Champion.

If Ryback were to beat an accomplished superstar like The Miz to become the Intercontinental Champion, then that would be more impressive than anything else that he's done so far in his WWE career.

It's booking that makes sense because it won't hurt The Miz too much and will instantly help Ryback's credibility if he beats an established star to win one of the most historically prestigious titles in the company.

The WWE now just has to make this happen.

Drake Oz is a WWE Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter!