Seth Rollins Will Not Be WWE World Champion Before WrestleMania 31

Seth Rollins is the crown jewel of The Authority, the man hailed by WWE's corporate heel faction as the future of the company. Indeed, as he struts on TV every week with the Money in the Bank briefcase, it's hard to dispute he's on the way up.

But even as he climbs that ladder, the fact is that his chances of actually winning the gold are still open for debate. Fans may respect him and appreciate what he does, but he will not become WWE world champion before WrestleMania 31.

The truth is that Rollins is definitely in a great place. Standing next to Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in The Authority has done wonders for his singles career and has put him on the map as a player in the company. 

His time with The Shield helped him become famous, but his time without them helped him become a star.

It seems like only yesterday that The Hounds of Justice first invaded WWE. Rollins, along with Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, came from out of nowhere and grabbed the industry by the throat. They forever changed the notion of what a heel faction is supposed to be and became arguably the greatest one that WWE has ever known.

The Shield didn't set out to take every championship. They did not pursue women or fast cars. They were not concerned with taking over the company. All The Shield wanted was to dominate. And they did just that.

credit: wwe.com

For nearly two years, no one could touch them, and very few could even slow them down. The Shield was at the top because its members worked very hard to get there and earned their stripes along the way. Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns looked the part, sounded the part and looked good every time they were on camera.

But all great factions eventually end, even The Shield.

Their implosion on June 2 of this year is a moment that still lingers for many fans who just didn't want to see them part ways.  However, WWE had more in mind for these three than just work as a trio. Singles success awaited every man, and such success initially began with Rollins.

Rollins was the one who betrayed the group, the one who essentially sold his soul to The Authority and gave up his Shield teammates in the process. When he bashed his supposed friends with a steel chair on Raw that night, fans sat stunned. The Shield was dying, but Rollins was just being born.

From that moment, Rollins became Triple H's right-hand man, his protegee of sorts. Rollins went from being known as The Shield's architect to being the next big thing, a guy who had the whole world at his feet.

All he had to do was reach up for it.  And he did just that at Money in the Bank.

credit: wwe.com

When Rollins pulled down that briefcase, the point became very clear to everyone watching: WWE had faith in him, and he was going places. Rollins finally had something concrete to separate himself from Ambrose and Reigns, something that made him not only different but perhaps a bit more important.

Rollins had a golden ticket, and the door to the future was his to unlock.

But even as he has carried that case containing the WWE world title contract, the fact is that many fans are constantly wondering when it's going to happen. Many likely believed that he would cash in when Cena was still the champion, but that didn't happen.

Considering that Cena is still WWE's No. 1 guy, the truth is that all roads to the main event go through him. There was every reason to think Rollins would travel that road as well.

Of course, that didn't happen, and before he could successfully cash in the case, Cena lost the championship to Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. Suddenly, the angle became a bit more complicated, and the potential outcome became lot more confusing.

Where does Rollins stand now? In a company whose champion works less than part-time, what hope is there for a full-time hardworking guy just trying to hit that all-important next level? What is the briefcase for if not to help Rollins clear the next hurdle in his career?

The truth is that Lesnar is not the only one standing in Rollins' way. Reigns himself may be the next man to wear the gold, and if that is indeed the case, Rollins will find himself even further out from getting his hands on the title.

The reason for that is the fact that many fans feel a Reigns championship win will have to come at WrestleMania 31 next year. There just seems to be no better way for WWE to handle it, no better way for the company to move forward than by crowning Reigns as the next top guy on the worldwide stage.

It just makes the most sense, as it would clearly establish Reigns' move to the top and signal the beginning of the next generation coming to power in WWE.

And Rollins will surely be part of that generation. He has the physical tools necessary to make it happen and the heart it takes to actually succeed on a very high level. There is really no reason to believe he cannot make an impact in the next stage of WWE's evolution.

But to imagine him actually doing it before WrestleMania 31 just seems like a stretch. Rollins is talented, capable and has tremendous upside, but all things considered, he will not become WWE world champion right now.

That moment may come, but it will likely not come before WrestleMania.