Predictions and Best Feuds for Mark Henry After His Return from Injury

Former World Heavyweight champion Mark Henry is back on television after time off due to injury, but just what is WWE intending to do with the star in the future?

The wrestler, of course, returned at the Survivor Series pay-per-view last week for a short, random and not-very-good bout with Ryback. Henry won with the World's Strongest Slam.

The next night, he teamed with new Intercontinental champion Big E Langston to take on Ryback and Curtis Axel in a decent match, with Henry and Langston picking up the victory.

By the looks of it, Henry will be clashing with Ryback at the TLC event on December 15.

We can only hope that bout will be better than the pair's disastrous match at WrestleMania 29 earlier this year. Ideally, management won't give the pair too much time.

Granted, this is a perfectly adequate comeback program. However, should Henry really be hanging around the midcard and facing off against Ryback, a star whose career has plummeted in recent times and barely feels relevant anymore?

Honestly, it's difficult to see even the most devoted of Henry's fans getting into this program.

Another possibility is that Henry and Langston will become a full-time tag team duo, something hinted at over the past week.

Again, while not a terrible idea—WWE can always use new tag teams—it seems like a waste of the Henry's talent and abilities.

But it might be the best the 42-year-old can hope for right now.

Fans may ask, but why isn't he higher up the card? After all, he's got the star power, vocal skills and charisma to really go places in wrestling.

Why isn't he feuding with Randy Orton over the belt? At least it would be a relatively new feud.

You could also turn him heel again and have him face John Cena for his World title. Considering that the pair's feud earlier this year was a woeful disappointment—mainly thanks to bad booking—it might be good to give the two another shot at it.

Alas, it's very possible that the wrestler's long history of injuries has put WWE off pushing him in main events for good.

The company may not feel comfortable putting a major belt on him in case he gets hurt again and throws its plans into disarray.

Or maybe the booking team is simply too wary and afraid of going with anyone but Cena as the No. 1 babyface. The same applies to Daniel Bryan.

That TLC's main event is currently scheduled to be Cena vs. Orton—a match that would have been suited more to 2007 than 2013—may tell you everything you need to know about just how well the company has built up new stars in the past couple of years.

Hey, it's not just Henry: Everyone in WWE seems to be struggling to break through the glass ceiling these days.

Expect the former World Heavyweight champion to have some decent matches and moderately entertaining feuds in the midcard in the upcoming year. Anything more than that—say, another run with the World title—is probably a stretch.