WWE Survivor Series 2014: Analyzing the Impact of Brock Lesnar's Absence on PPV

WWE Survivor Series 2014 has a Brock Lesnar deficiency—one that will benefit an ensemble cast of rising stars.

The pay-per-view will be without Lesnar and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, and the marquee will be missing a major name. A part-time schedule has the king away from this kingdom. With the gold he wears and the buzz he brings missing, Survivor Series is going to feel like more of "B" show than it should.

Still, there are positives to take away from Lesnar being at home rather than in the ring.

The Team Authority vs. Team Cena match takes his place at the top of the card. That bout and the build that comes with it allows a number of wrestlers to take the "next man up" adage to heart. It's the intriguing contest WWE is offering up with no Lesnar title match to plug in.

A Void at the Top

Lesnar's absence feels strange.

Seeing the top champion in the background for so long is hard for some fans come to terms with. We're used to seeing the champion far more often in this era.

The result is that Survivor Series and WWE itself feel like there's something missing.

The selling point for Lesnar as part-time world champ was that he was going to be a special attraction. That attraction hasn't been around in a long while, though. 

Fans have not seen Lesnar appear on Raw since Sept. 15, the go-home show for Night of Champions.

He has not defended the world title since that pay-per-view. When Survivor Series comes and goes with no beastly champ in sight, we will have seen Lesnar put the belt on the line just once in a span of three months.

Even with the smart choices as replacement main events, Hell in a Cell and Survivor Series feel like lesser shows minus the world title and the powerhouse who carries it around.

You have to go back to 2006 to find the last time the WWE title wasn't on the line at Survivor Series. The champ captained a team in an Elimination match that year, while Lesnar presumably won't be anywhere near St. Louis come Nov. 23.

If Survivor Series isn't a big enough deal to get Lesnar to strap on his boots, how can fans not feel that it's a less special event?

His championship's absence is significant as well. The exclusion of the world title as a featured part of the product dampens the excitement around the pursuit of it. It has been mentioned too infrequently. Superstars aren't clamoring to get in position to challenge for it. Cena, the rightful No. 1 contender, hasn't demanded that he get his shot by any certain time.

That's likely by design. WWE doesn't want to remind folks of Lesnar's absence. 

Credit: WWE.com

The lack of urgency around the title picture has less overall electricity around WWE. It also produces a feeling that WWE is in a transition period of sorts.

These Lesnar-less days have folks waiting around for the roster to be more whole, for the road to WrestleMania to begin. If the world champ is missing a show, it can't exactly be can't-miss.

That's not the conversation you expect to be having leading to a "Big Four" pay-per-view. 

The positive of this stretch is that it has allowed others to shine in Lesnar's stead. WWE has been forced to dig deeper into its roster, rather than just rely on The Beast.

The Replacements

The Lesnar-sized void has created opportunities. Had Lesnar signed a traditional deal, Cena vs. Lesnar would have likely headlined Hell in a Cell, and The Beast Incarnate would be headlining Survivor Series, perhaps against an established face like Big Show.

Instead, the upcoming November pay-per-view features Rollins, Dolph Ziggler and Rusev on the marquee.

Rollins is being billed as Team Authority's captain, allowing him the chance to lead a Survivor Series team early in his career. This Elimination bout marks the second straight pay-per-view in which he will compete in the main event.

Credit: WWE.com

Rusev gets to stand in the brightest spotlight of his career to date.

Fresh off winning the United States Championship, he gets a spot in a match JBL has tried to convince us is the biggest Survivor Series match to date. Rusev is not just there as filler either. The fact that The Authority has been so persistent in recruiting him elevates him.

With Lesnar around, WWE might not have had to go this Elimination route. Rusev would likely be taking on Sheamus on the undercard instead.

As for Ziggler, this storyline has put him on center stage. He's been the defiant, cocky hero standing up to The Authority despite the beatings that come with doing so.

On the Nov. 3 edition of Raw, he barked at Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and Company in one of the more passionate promos of his career. That led to an impromptu title defense against a top heel, Rollins. On Friday's SmackDown, he battled inside a steel cage in that night's main event.

Those opportunities likely wouldn't exist with Lesnar around to build toward his match.

Ziggler may instead be in some ancillary midcard feud. Rollins wouldn't hold the fate of The Authority in his hands. Instead, WWE is building for the future, leaning on Survivor Series tradition and putting two midcard champs at the top of the card.

The company has had to be more creative with no Lesnar and no world championship. Booking so often begins with deciding the next challenger for the top title.

That's not the case here. Necessity has led WWE to craft a high-stakes match that is a showcase for men looking to dethrone Lesnar.