Examining the Downfall of Bray Wyatt as a Top Character

When Bray Wyatt found himself embroiled in a feud with John Cena early in 2014, it should have been the Reaper of Souls' defining program, the rivalry that would see the bearded, second-generation grappler become the next breakout star in World Wrestling Entertainment.

Wyatt's promo work was extremely strong, his character fresh and unique and his ability to captivate the audience unlike any fans had seen in nearly a decade. He was so incredibly entrenched in every element of the character that it was not difficult for fans to believe any and everything he said or did.

Simply put, no other star in all of WWE was like Wyatt.

But he entered Payback in Chicago's Allstate Arena and proceeded to lose a Last Man Standing match to the leader of the Cenation. Most figured that would be the outcome, but few could have expected just how far, and how hard, Wyatt would fall following the show.

Why did he fall? How did he find himself in such a place of irrelevancy?

Let's take a look.

Creative Miscues

Rather than working to help the Wyatt character recover in the wake of his loss to Cena, Wyatt became lost in the shuffle of an ever-expanding WWE World Heavyweight Championship scene. Overshadowed by the surging Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, the aforementioned Cena and even the over-the-hill Kane, he competed in a Money in the Bank Ladder match in which he never really was much of a factor.

From there, he engaged Chris Jericho in a meaningless, undefined feud and played the role of punching bag for Cena following the former WWE world heavyweight champion's crushing defeat at the hands of Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.

He defeated Jericho in a stellar Steel Cage match but immediately followed it up with nothing of note on either Main Event or SmackDown.

Wyatt is at a crucial point in his WWE career. The destruction of The Shield created three young stars, all of whom have eclipsed the Eater of Worlds in recent months. It is imperative that WWE Creative sustains the heat that Wyatt established for himself earlier in the year or risk causing irreparable damage to a character that fans connected with so strongly throughout the spring.

Lack of Roster Depth

The lack of roster depth in WWE, especially surrounding the top of the card, has hurt Wyatt as he attempts to recover from the disastrous summer months.

With the elite stars in the company embroiled in rivalries with the remnants of The Shield, Wyatt was left to work with Chris Jericho, an all-time great who WWE Creative clearly had no plans for. As a result, they worked their way through mediocre writing and uneven stories en route to an excellent feud-ending cage match on the September 8 episode of Raw. 

Now Wyatt again finds himself with no star of comparable stature to work with. Sure, Big Show is an option, but the World's Largest Athlete is currently paired with Mark Henry. Given his injuries and age, it is best that the former world champion work in situations where he can do little to greater success.

That leaves programs with the likes of Dolph Ziggler and Sheamus. While both men are absolutely outstanding wrestlers and have been world heavyweight champions, both are perceived to be midcard stars at this point, and working with them would be a major step down for someone once on the brink of main event stardom.

So how can Wyatt recover?

The answer does not lie within Wyatt himself. Unfortunately for him, there is very little he can do at this point to recover from what has been a monumental downfall. All he can continue to do is evolve as an in-ring performer and deliver the delightfully creepy promos that helped put him on the map in the first place.

As long as he does not worsen in the ring or on the mic, his time to shine will come again, and he will hopefully be able to ride a different wave of momentum to the promised land.