WWE SmackDown Results: Biggest Winners, Losers and Moments from December 5

What is it about SmackDown that makes it a far superior show to Monday Night Raw?

Sure, it is not live and there is rarely anything in the way of major angles. Yet, it is a much faster-paced show in which everything feels like it is meaningful in the context of the story being told.

There is no filler to be found and the tired, boring, stale franchise player John Cena makes only the occasional appearance, allowing the spotlight to be shone on Superstars such as Ryback, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler and Erick Rowan, all of whom played key roles in this week's broadcast.

The remnants of The Authority were desperate to regain anything even close to resembling momentum just nine days away from the TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs pay-per-view.

To do so, Seth Rollins and The Big Show would have to knock off the duo of Ryback and Erick Rowan, both of whom have been on tremendous rolls in the wake of the Survivor Series.

How would the duo fare as SmackDown invaded Oklahoma City for this week's broadcast?

What about the rest of the roster? Who would emerge as winners and losers leading into the final pay-per-view of the year?

I'm glad you asked.

Credit: WWE.com

Winner: Erick Rowan

For the second time this week, Erick Rowan earns the winner label. Not because of a stellar performance, mind you, but because he continued to reap the rewards of being treated like a legitimate star by WWE Creative.

Prior to Friday's main event, Rowan received the star entrance, arriving to the ring after partner Ryback. Add to that the fact WWE's crack production staff did a fairly solid job of piping in the canned heat and it was abundantly clear the company has major plans for the character they have taken to referring to as "Big Red."

Whether he can breakthrough the proverbial glass ceiling in a way others, including Ryback, have not been able to remains a mystery. 

What is not is Rowan is already succeeding as a singles star at heights no one could have imagined.

Winner: Naomi

One of the most dynamic and athletic Divas on the entire roster, Naomi continued to benefit from increased television exposure, thanks to her role as the centerpiece of the rivalry between WWE Tag Team champions The Miz and Damien Mizdow and their No. 1 contenders, Jimmy and Jey Uso.

Not only did that story play a huge part in Friday's broadcast, but Naomi was also able to focus on progressing her own in-ring career, scoring a big victory over Brie Bella.

With an improved Nikki Bella reigning over the division as Divas champion and AJ Lee hanging around, it will not be easy but if Naomi can continue picking up impressive victories such as the one she netted Friday night, fans will buy her as a legitimate contender to the title.

That is, if the soap opera aspect of the tag title rivalry does not overwhelm her championship aspirations.

Losers: The Authority (Or Whatever Is Left Of It)

Seth Rollins, Kane and Big Show, along with Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury, presented a united front Friday night, vowing they would work together to ensure the remnants of The Authority prospered, even without Triple H and Stephanie McMahon there to guide them.

Things did not quite go according to plan as Kane got himself booted from ringside after a heated exchange with the official, and Rollins and Big Show proceeded to lose in the night's marquee match. In fact, it was Rollins who dropped the fall following Shellshocked, sending him into the final week before a huge Tables match against John Cena licking his wounds.

Expect to see Rollins, Big Show and Kane rebound come Monday night as WWE Creative attempts to book them as strongly as possible so fans perceive them as a threat to Cena and the other top-shelf babyfaces in the company.

If not, the idea of them being legitimate competition come next Sunday's pay-per-view will be way too far-fetched for anyone to believe.

Winners: Gold and Stardust

Winning the WWE Tag Team Championships this past September at Night of Champions was more of a curse than a blessing for Gold and Stardust in that the minute they captured the titles, they began losing more than they had at any point all year. Even after dropping the championships to Miz and Damien Mizdow at Survivor Series, they struggled to regain the momentum they had built over the summer.

Though there will be some who question just how effective a rivalry with The New Day will be, the promo delivered by the brothers in paint was so strong that one cannot help but be a bit intrigued by the direction the story may be heading.

There was an edginess to the words uttered by the former champions, a look in their eyes and a more serious tone than fans have come to expect from them. Goldust's "darkness falls on the New Day" line was so ominous that this writer, for one, cannot wait to see what the veteran of the mat game means by it.

As someone who has attended a house show in which the two teams worked together, I can attest to the fact the chemistry is there, the match was quite good and the crowd was most certainly into the action.

Now it is up to WWE Creative to give them the opportunity to tell their story and not cut it off at the knees, which happens far too often.

Winner: The Miz

There is a reason WWE took a chance with The Miz in 2010, first awarding him the Money in the Bank briefcase, then the company's heavyweight championship. A sizable portion had to do with his good looks and the fact he was media savvy and, thus, the perfect spokesman for the company.

But it even more had to do with the fact The Miz was, at one time, a tremendous heel.

Fans loved to hate the slimy, sneaky, detestable Superstar. They wanted to see him get his comeuppance so, the company surmised, they would pay to see someone take the top prize in the industry away from him at some point.

That was not entirely the case as Miz's title reign earned notoriety for being one of the worst ever, thanks to a number of factors that did not all fall at his feet. Over the years, one thing WWE has done to the detriment of the performer himself is move him further and further away from what made him such a great heel in the first place.

At his best, Miz is the instigator, the loudmouthed villain who knew what buttons to push to stir someone up, then proceeded to press those buttons until they wore out. He was sleazy and fans hated him for it.

The WWE Universe got a peek at that side of The Miz as he was at his best for the first time in months. There was no overshadowing him by Damien Mizdow because, for the first time in years, WWE Creative let him be that guy rather than some mock Hollywood star.

It worked.

As the current story rages on, it should be interesting to see if they stick to what is proven or if they continue to play up the actor gimmick that has been a failure to this point.