WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from October 17

Every week on Bleacher Report, I take an in-depth look at WWE SmackDown to recap the action, offer analysis and grade the matches, segments and anything else that takes place on the show. I also provide some predictions on the direction of storylines.

Hell in a Cell is getting closer, which means just about everything we will see on any upcoming show will deal with the feuds that are going to be featured at the pay-per-view.

This week's SmackDown focused mostly on the feud between Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins, which seems to have become a trend in recent weeks.

With Brock Lesnar sitting on the sidelines for the time being, WWE has to make the non-title feuds more important. Featuring Ambrose and Rollins regularly has definitely helped make Lesnar's absence less noticeable.

Let's take a look at what happened this week on SmackDown.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins opened the show with a promo talking about how he sold out for his own benefit and how everyone in his position would do the same thing.

Dolph Ziggler came out and got in Rollins' face, delivering a dropkick to Mr. Money in the Bank before their match actually got started.

The match itself ended up being the best of the night, which should come as no surprise when you look at the rest of the card. These two are simply on a different level to most of the roster.

They can both wrestle, hit the big spots and brawl with the best of them. Quite frankly, this should have been the main event of the night. It's just too bad Ziggler can't catch a break and score a win over Rollins.

Grade: B+

Some notes from the match:

• People always talk about how exciting Rollins can be, but they never talk about his strength. He dead-lifted Ziggler from the mat into a powerbomb position. That is not an easy thing to do to someone who is over 200 pounds.
• Ziggler has retained his title in plenty of matches, but it seems like he loses every non-title match. Would it kill the people booking the show to have him win when the title is not on the line?
• Ziggler should teach a class at the Performance Center on how to deliver the perfect dropkick.

AJ vs. Layla

This match came about after Layla ditched AJ during their tag match on Monday. AJ was able to get her revenge with a quick win via the Black Widow.

Alicia Fox and Paige attacked AJ after the match was over, laying her out with the Rampaige. The crowd was absolutely dead for this. SmackDown often edits in canned reactions from the crowd, but even they couldn't make it seem like the crowd cared, which is sad because it wasn't a terrible match.

AJ and Layla are both good wrestlers. AJ may be more technically sound, but Layla has had moments of brilliance throughout her career. For a woman nearing 40, she keeps up with the spring chickens in the division very well.

Grade: C-

Some notes from the match:

• Layla seemed to have a lot of trouble getting to the middle turnbuckle at one point. It seems strange for someone who is so athletic to have a minor issue like that.
• It's good that they are keeping all the Total Divas storylines away from the Divas Championship scene, but it makes it feel like there is a fracture in the division. AJ needs to start having more title defenses against people other than Paige.

The Usos and Sheamus vs. Miz and Gold and Stardust

Sheamus and the Usos gave an energetic interview with Renee Young before the match got started. It was their usual babyface rally cry, but the reference to Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito in Twins made it a little more entertaining.

The six men who were involved in this match are very talented, so it comes as no surprise that they were able to put on a decent show.

It certainly wasn't a show-stealing performance, but it was a solid outing that helped get the show back on track after the Divas match brought things down.

Sheamus and the Usos picked up the win after Sheamus took out Goldust with a Brogue Kick. The tag champs have been taking a lot of losses lately, which could be a sign that they won't hold the titles for very long.

Grade: B-

Some notes from the match:

• The Usos and Sheamus team together so often that they should just become a stable. Sheamus could even use some Braveheart face paint to fit in more.
• JBL questioned how Goldust knows you can't hear someone scream in space. It's pretty common knowledge that there is no sound in the vacuum of space.
• Seriously, who doesn't love the movie Twins?

Big Show, Mark Henry and Rusev

Big Show came out to talk about his upcoming match with Rusev at Hell in a Cell and how he has already knocked out Rusev twice but never pinned him.

He brought out Mark Henry to politely ask him to stay out of the match on Sunday, which Henry agreed to do. There was no real friction, but it seems pretty clear where this is going.

Henry will likely turn on Big Show at HIAC and cost him his match with Rusev. It allows Rusev to keep up his winning streak without making Big Show look weak.

It also gives Henry the chance to be the entertaining heel we all know he is capable of being. Henry is a decent babyface, but a man of his size is so much more valuable as a villain.

Rusev and Lana came out to insult Big Show, Mark Henry and America. This segment dragged on a little longer than it should have, but it helped push their HIAC match.

Grade: C

Some notes from the segment:

• Big Show is such a great role model. Sharing his story about flipping over some guy's car is a great example to set for kids. We all know that the best way to solve your problems is with vandalism, right?
• Big Show can't tell the difference between a Russian accent and an Austrian accent.
• Big Show's dancing is right up there with Elaine's from Seinfeld.

Naomi vs. Nikki Bella

It feels really strange saying that a Divas match was better than one featuring AJ on the same card, but that is what happened here thanks to Naomi.

It was another short contest, but in the small amount of time it was given, Naomi managed to hit a flurry of offense that outshone anything from the AJ vs. Layla match.

However, Naomi was not able to pick up the win. Nikki Bella finished her off with a Bella Buster to pick up a quick win.

Grade: C+

Some notes from the match:

• Nikki should focus more on her wrestling ability than her power. It's great that she is making herself stronger, but she needs to be a good wrestler first.
• Naomi is so underappreciated in the Divas division. She should have been champion at least once by now.

Dean Ambrose vs. Kane

This felt like an old-school match from start to finish. Dean Ambrose is a brawler and Kane is a monster, so they definitely brought some physicality to this one.

It wasn't a big exciting spot fest—this felt like a fight. Ambrose still hit exciting moves, such as the suicide dive and the slingshot over the top rope, but this was more about striking than wrestling.

Unfortunately for everyone, Seth Rollins caused yet another DQ finish by pulling Ambrose out of the ring and attacking him. These two have a good feud going, but they cannot end every match they are involved in with a disqualification.

Ambrose was able to overcome Kane and Rollins with the help of a steel chair, sending the two Authority lackeys packing to end the show.

Grade: C+

Some notes from the match:

• Kane and Dean Ambrose could have a good feud if the rest of the Authority were kept out of it. Their styles complement each other very well.
• The reason the grade is a bit low is because of the DQ finish. There's just too many of those happening these days.
• Out of all the generic theme songs WWE has given to its wrestlers, Ambrose's might fit his character the best.

Final Thoughts and Predictions

This week's show was good, but it wasn't great. We saw a few good matches, a few disappointments and a little bit of storyline development. Basically, it was an average show.

The best match of the night was Ziggler vs. Rollins by a mile. Those two know exactly what it takes to excite the crowd. A long-term feud between the two would make everything else going on at the time pale in comparison.

Hell in a Cell is one week from Sunday, which means WWE has precious little time left to get us interested in a pay-per-view that doesn't feature the WWE World Heavyweight champion.

Not having the main title on a PPV doesn't mean it will be a bad show, but it certainly doesn't help drive up interest among fans. WWE has one week left to fill up the rest of the card. Hopefully they make good choices.

Predictions:

• Mark Henry will turn on Big Show at HIAC. He won't align with Rusev; he will just start a feud with Big Show.
• Cesaro vs. Ziggler for the Intercontinental Championship will be added to HIAC next week.
• Damien Mizdow will cost Sheamus the United States Championship at HIAC.
• The Usos will get another Tag Team Championship match at HIAC.
• AJ and Paige will be put into one last match at HIAC for the Divas title.

What did you think of this week's SmackDown?

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.