WWE SmackDown Results: Biggest Winners, Losers and Moments from November 21

For Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Ryback and Erick Rowan, Friday night's SmackDown was one that tested their will, shook their confidence and made them question the decision to stand alongside John Cena at Survivor Series this Sunday.

COO Triple H announced early in the show that a loss by Team Cena would lead to the termination of the contracts of everyone but the captain. Ever defiant, Ziggler denounced the notion of fear, stating "there is nothing to fear when there is nothing left to lose."

He and his partners were united entering the night's main event but wound up beaten, brutalized and pummeled by the end of the broadcast, as Triple H and Team Authority sent a message to John Cena, who was not in attendance.

How will Cena's lack of leadership entering Sunday's monumental main event effect the chemistry of his team?

More importantly, will the team be able to overcome the display of dominance by Team Authority Friday night to achieve victory and drive Triple H and Stephanie McMahon from power?

Who else joined Seth Rollins, Mark Henry, Rusev, Luke Harper and Kane in emerging from this week's show with momentum on their side entering World Wrestling Entertainment's annual November spectacular?

Let's take a look.

Credit: WWE.com

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Prior to the revelation by Bray Wyatt that Ambrose had a rough upbringing, that he had daddy issues the Reaper of Souls could exploit as he played mind games with the Lunatic Fringe, there was very much known about Ambrose's formative years.

So to suddenly find out that he had this rough upbringing, with a father who was in and out of jail and never there for his son felt very forced.

Friday night, Ambrose made up for the lackluster storytelling to this point with a promo that painted his youth as a nightmarish situation. Asked by his mother to go and pick up a pack of cigarettes and a few lottery tickets, he was attacked and had the money stolen from him. His mother's response? She handed him a pair of brass knuckles, called them his survival kit and told him to never let it happen again.

Although it was a brief promo, it helped fill in some of the plot holes left by the sudden shift in the direction of the feud and showcased just how expert a storyteller Ambrose is.

Credit: WWE.com

Losers: The Tag Teams

Los Matadores squared off with the Miz and Damien Mizdow Friday night, just 48 hours before a huge Fatal 4-Way match for the WWE Tag Team titles. Champions Gold and Stardust sat in on commentary for the bout, as did former titleholders The Usos. What resulted was one of the worst segments of WWE television in recent memory.

And that includes the Bella Twins-Jerry Springer debacle.

At least that segment had all the markings of a train wreck leading into it. No one was shocked when it wound up being as bad as it was. There was no indication that Stardust would talk over the match and distract viewers from the ring action with his bizarre act. There was no indication that the entire segment would descend into ridiculousness—a joke with an awful punchline and even worse delivery.

Every one of the teams emerged from Friday's show much worse off than when they entered, and the fact that both JBL and Michael Cole were quick to discuss just how bad the entire ordeal was only hammers that point home.

Credit: WWE.com

Winner: Rusev

The Bulgarian Brute, the current United States champion, continued to demonstrate consistent progression between the ropes this week as he wrestled Dolph Ziggler in a highly competitive, hotly contested bout. He kept up move for move with the Showoff and looked more comfortable with himself and his abilities than he did the last time the Superstars clashed.

While Rusev was incredibly green when he made his in-ring debut the night after WrestleMania, his work with the likes of Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Big Show, Mark Henry and Jack Swagger has allowed him the opportunity to work with former heavyweight champions of all shapes and styles. As a result, he has been able to pick things up quicker than he would have if the squash matches against Zack Ryder and Justin Gabriel were to have continued.

Despite once looking like a questionable gimmick with a limited shelf life, Rusev and Lana are well on their way to entering 2015 with a tremendous amount of momentum behind them. Can they keep it up and channel their hard work into an even bigger push in the new year?

Only time will tell, but at this point and based on what we have seen from the duo thus far, all signs point to yes.

Credit: WWE.com

Loser: Nikki Bella

Nikki Bella had a rough week. After a loss to sister and personal assistant Brie, she entered SmackDown hoping that her subservient sibling would avenge an assault by AJ Lee by beating the Divas champion. Not only did that not happen but AJ dressed as the evil twin, complete with a padded backside and a stuffed top.

Mocked and dismayed, Nikki watched her sister lose and stared down her Survivor Series opponent, promising that their issues are not over. "You'll pay for this," she could be overheard saying as AJ kissed her Divas title.

If there is a silver lining for the egotistical Diva, it is that WWE booking would seem to indicate that she will leave Sunday's pay-per-view with the second Divas Championship reign of her career—if she can keep Brie under control long enough to knock off her unstable opponent.

Credit: WWE.com

Winner: Erick Rowan

"Freedom."

With that one word, Erick Rowan summed up exactly what a victory for Team Cena at Survivor Series means for WWE as a whole in a way that no angle or overly long promo ever could. It was one word, delivered by someone portrayed as a simpleton, that lent a great deal of gravity to the program.

A win this weekend means freedom from the oppressive rule of the Authority and freedom from the fear of losing one's job or being punished for standing up to WWE's resident power couple. In a more broader sense, it meant freedom from the same, tired authority-figure story that has encapsulated WWE programming over the last year.

Rowan delivered the single-word line to perfection and struck a nerve with this writer, if no one else.

Add to that the fact that he defeated Cesaro in singles competition and Rowan made his case for MVP of the night's broadcast.