WWE TLC 2013: PPV Is Too Early for the Shield to Break Up

The Shield appear near the point of collapse, but the trio can't end their run together at WWE TLC 2013; a showdown for the ages awaits.

Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose are sure to split. WWE has three future megastars in those men. However, the company would be missing out on a classic feud if The Shield break up before colliding with The Wyatt Family.

For "The Hounds of Justice," cracks have begun to crawl along their unity.

On the Dec. 6 SmackDown, CM Punk was to face one member of The Shield. Reigns and Rollins said that the baddest and the best member would have to represent them. Ambrose chose himself for that role, leaving his teammates looking irritated.

Ambrose lost to Punk that night. 

Days later, Ambrose went up against Punk again. During the match, Punk fell to the outside of the ring and Rollins and Reigns slunk toward him. Ambrose waved them off.

He shoved his finger into Rollins' face and told Reigns he could handle this himself.

That proved to be untrue. Punk cracked his knee against Ambrose's chin and covered him for a three-count. Reigns and Rollins had begun to walk away after their confrontation with Ambrose, but they were soon back in the ring, pouncing on Punk.

Michael Cole spoke about this dissension among the group being Punk's only chance to win at TLC.

The foreshadowing of a possible rift forming between members of The Shield was not of the subtle variety. It had fans predicting The Shield's demise at the final pay-per-view of 2013. Tweets like this one sprung up after Monday's Raw.

Beyond The Curtain: Wrestling News was even willing to make a brave wager on it happening.

That's a story, though, that is best given the slow-burn treatment. That is especially true considering how great a feud between The Shield and The Wyatt Family can be.

Before Survivor Series, on the Nov. 13 edition of Raw, fans got a taste of that clash. It tasted incredible.

Fighting over who would get to tear apart Punk and Daniel Bryan, the two trios barked at each other before brawling. These kinds of unofficial fights are common, but it's not often that they end with the crowd chanting "This is awesome!"

There was a spark here not often seen when rivals square off.

It's been too long since WWE has had a great stable versus stable rivalry. The company now has the opportunity to pull one off, one that some fans have been calling for since The Wyatt Family debuted in July.

The speedy, wild style of The Shield would pair excellently with The Wyatt Family's brute force. Bray Wyatt and Ambrose going at it on the mic pits two of the best mic workers against each other.

The backwoods brutes would face WWE's mercenary thugs, a fight akin to a pack of wolves gnashing their teeth at a sleuth of bears.

The Shield, a group that spent the majority of its debut year churning out hits, would finally have a rival that is a cohesive triad.

WWE has been forced to make up alliances to face The Shield from The Usos and Christian to Ryback and Team Hell No. This would be the first time that their opponents would be a true unit.

That's partly why the idea of this feud is so enticing. This is the rare meeting of rivals that is teeming with electricity before it even begins.

The folks at the Markin' Out podcast said it best.

WWE has a money match for WrestleMania XXX on its hands, but only if it doesn't get antsy and hurry to the conclusion of story of The Shield. As big as The Shield's first matches were, as many big names as they took out, it's only fitting to make the biggest possible deal of their breakup.

Folding after their first spat isn't the way to do that.

Reigns, Rollins and Ambrose must stay together through TLC even with Punk looking to create a schism between them. Their end would be better suited as the result of a war with The Wyatt Family, the wounds of that battle causing their expected disintegration.