Erick Rowan, Team Cena, Heel Champions and More from the Elimination Mailbag

WWE rolled out its heir apparent to John Cena, as Erick Rowan came to the top star's defense to conclude Raw. All hell broke loose, and what has been hailed as the biggest Survivor Series match of all time just got real.

Well, not really. But it was still a good swerve to see a post-Wyatt Rowan doing something that mattered, wasn't it?

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@ThisIsNasty erick rowan on team cena? Thoughts? #WWEMailba

— @RealColinGinter (@RealColinGinter) November 19, 2014"

If Rowan is booked like this every week for the next year, I'll sure look like a genius since I bought low on him following his split from the Wyatt Family.

This was a legit surprise. Judging by his appearances alongside Grumpy Cat and his apparent obsession with Renee Young, it seemed his ceiling was going to be midcard comedy. But now that he's the first Wyatt to turn babyface and currently siding with Cena, WWE either has bigger plans for him or simply needs another body for its massive main event.

From an in-ring standpoint, a Rowan-Luke Harper feud on paper isn't the catnip for smark wrestling fans that, say, a Harper-Dolph Ziggler feud is. But the storyline runs laps around most wrestling matches given their history. With the sudden change of heart by Rowan, fans are going to want to know why he's siding with Team Cena and, more importantly, why he is going after his former brethren. 

Rowan will have to improve immensely in the ring if he doesn't want to be typecast as a goofy comedy giant like most monster babyfaces with an undercooked workrate.

But even if he is, think about how many of those masks the WWE machine can sell to children.

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@ThisIsNasty At this Sunday's Survivor Series PPV, in the Main Event, what do you think the order of elimination will be?

— Lewis James Miller (@lewis_miller12) November 19, 2014"

This is a fun question. Let's try calling the whole match, Wikipedia-style:

Elimination	Wrestler	Team	Eliminated by	Elimination Move	Time
1	Dolph Ziggler	Team Cena	Seth Rollins	Rollup pin holding the ropes	3:13
2	Erick Rowan	Team Cena	Luke Harper	Spinning Clothesline	5:05
3	Big Show	Team Cena	Rusev	Accolade	6:51
4	Ryback	Team Cena	Disqualification	Refusing to break five count on Rollins	8:01
5	Luke Harper	Team Authority	John Cena	Attitude Adjustment	8:52
6	Mark Henry	Team Authority	John Cena	Attitude Adjustment	8:59
7	Kane	Team Authority	John Cena	STF	11:56
8	Rusev	Team Authority	John Cena	Attitude Adjustment	15:22
9	Seth Rollins	Team Authority	John Cena	Attitude Adjustment	20:17
Survivor	Cena Wins, LOL

At least, that's what the Internet is afraid will happen.

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@ThisIsNasty What do you think about all the titles in WWE being held by heels? #BestforBusiness or nah?

— Osaz Says... (@osaz_oe) November 18, 2014"

It's always best for business for more heels to be champion than babyface.

Game of Thrones wouldn't be nearly as interesting if a beloved character wasn't killed off every week. The continued success of villains demands justice, and that's what will keep fans tuning into the product every week.

Even after Daniel Bryan climbed the mountaintop as the feel-good story of 2014 to kick off this year's post-WrestleMania season, he was laid out by Kane soon after. There always has to be some sense of unrest within WWE's parallel universe, and a hostile takeover of heel champions does the trick.

WWE has laid the groundwork for a championship chase with most titles, and if done correctly, a solid feud followed by a good payoff will tell a story that will make most belts meaningful.

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