Best and Worst Decisions WWE Made in the 2015 Royal Rumble Match

Early on, the WWE Royal Rumble 2015 match teemed with potential, but after poor decision-making cut out the contest's heart, it was left to bleed on the mat, suffering.

It felt like Dr. Jekyll was in charge of booking one-half of the Rumble and Mr. Hyde wrote the second half. WWE was smart to tease future feuds and build up a monster in line for a major clash at WrestleMania. Then came the out-of-touch choices.

Despite how loudly fans had made it known whom they wanted to win, WWE stubbornly plowed ahead in a different direction. Beyond choosing Roman Reigns over Daniel Bryan, the storytelling on Sunday's pay-per-view made the climax a whimpering sound one couldn't hear over all the boos.

Flawed as it was, the match had several things that worked. WWE Creative treated a pair of heels very well, to begin with. 

The Subplots

• Best: Bray Wyatt dominates, Rusev looks strong, tension between teams
• Worst: Dolph Ziggler's brief run in the match

Wyatt flung R-Truth out of the ring. He boxed Bubba Ray Dudley around and made quick work of Sin Cara and Zack Ryder. He looked every bit the monster fans have been waiting for him to become.

Credit: WWE.com

Even colliding with his old "family" members didn't slow Wyatt down.

He not only eliminated a slew of Superstars, but he stayed in the match longer than anyone else. That has him charging forward toward WrestleMania. It was the kind of career-boosting display that the Rumble should be used for.

Rusev didn't dominate as much as The Eater of Worlds, but he had himself a notable night as well.

The powerhouse tossed Diamond Dallas Page, Fandango and others from the bout. He was also the match's runner-up, becoming the beast who came up just short. 

Showcasing those two heels made for entertaining additions to the match and served to elevate both guys. 

WWE also hinted strongly at two feuds between existing teams. Damien Mizdow refused to obey The Miz's orders to let him take his spot. Stardust and Goldust came to blows.

Credit: WWE.com

In both cases, the idea was better than the execution. The Rhodes brothers' collision wasn't nearly memorable enough. The push-back against Reigns overshadowed Mizdow and Miz's moment.

It seemed as if WWE thought Reigns clocking The Miz would shift the negativity into cheers. It didn't. The company should have had this story unfold earlier when it could be the center of attention. 

Ziggler would have killed for the kind of attention that Mizdow and The Miz's animosity received, though. He came in last and was quickly gone from the action.

Page outlasted Ziggler, as noted on WWE.com's list of Rumble stats. That's not exactly the kind of push The Showoff's fans were hoping for when he was instrumental in Team Cena's win at Survivor Series.

The Moments

• Best: The Rosebuds save Kofi Kingston  
• Worst: The Authority dominates, Daniel Bryan eliminated too early

The annual amazing escape from Kingston was not as great as previous years, but keeping the tradition around was smart.

Him falling onto The Rosebuds' waiting arms added some needed comedy to the bout.

Credit: WWE.com

Fans now look for him to do something special every year. This time out, it was more luck than skill that got him back into the ring, but it was fun nonetheless. 

The last moments of the match dragged. Blame Bryan being out and Big Show and Kane being the stars of the show.

The Authority clobbering the babyfaces of the roster is a tired storyline. It's one WWE has refused to move past. Big Show taking out rising, popular stars in Ziggler, Wyatt and Dean Ambrose didn't generate heel heat; it further pressed the air out of the arena.

It only made the foregone conclusion more obvious.

Credit: WWE.com

If WWE was intent on having Reigns win, it should have kept Bryan in until at least the last four men standing. He was the only other realistic favorite. Having him fall early on robbed the match of suspense from that point on.

The Surprise Entrants

• Best: Diamond Dallas Page, Bubba Ray Dudley, Boogeyman
• Worst: No Randy Orton, no NXT

WWE brought in three fun names into the mix.

Page provided the nostalgia. Offering him a chance to hit a few Diamond Cutters made the match more entertaining, giving it one of its most memorable moments.

The Boogeyman served as a way to both highlight how strange Wyatt is and to insert some humor.

Seeing those two weirdos try to outdo each other gave the Rumble some good energy early on. This match was the perfect spot for a guy like Boogeyman, as he's not going to deliver any classics in the ring, but his character made an impact.

And man was it great to have Dudley back in WWE. 

It seemed as if word of him appearing was just one of those perpetual Internet rumors that led nowhere. Then there he was, slugging it out with Luke Harper.

Orton should have joined him in that ring. The Viper has been held out of action for too long now.

Survivor Series, TLC and the Rumble have all passed now with WWE not using those big moments to bring him back.

It would have been awesome to watch him tear apart Kane and Big Show's alliance. He's had a long time for his rage to fester. Seeing it explode would have elevated the match.

Plus, The Authority, and Seth Rollins specifically, could have cheated him out of a win to set up the expected Rollins vs. Orton match.

WWE also chose not to carry on its tradition of having one NXT star appear in the Rumble. The developmental branch has gotten even more popular, and this would have been a perfect opportunity to showcase one or two of its top talents.

There's no way that having Titus O'Neil and Sin Cara showing up would have been nearly as fun as Adrian Neville or Sami Zayn battling it out in there.

The Result

• Worst: Rushing Reigns

Reigns is going to be a megastar. He has too much athletic ability and presence not to. The trouble is, WWE is fast-tracking him to the top despite fans making it clear they are more passionate about other stars.

Ambrose, Rollins and Bryan are all in better positions to be WWE's marquee guy. WWE just refuses to buy that the reactions those men get should translate into their ascension. 

Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio are cautionary tales of talented Superstars who suffered resentment as a result of being pushed too quickly. Reigns looks to be writing a similar story.

The kind of popularity that Bryan enjoys right now is rare. Fans have connected with him, stick up for him and are clearly heartbroken when he is turned away from center stage. 

That's not something to try and circumvent; that's an asset to make use of.

Imagine if during Steve Austin's rise to stardom, WWE refused to let him be "the man." What if at WrestleMania XIV, the company had chosen Ken Shamrock over Austin to face Shawn Michaels?

Reigns may eventually create the kind of connection that Bryan shares with the crowd. Trying to force that spark to happen results in the mess that unfolded on Sunday.

Even with The Rock at his side, the crowd refused to root for Reigns.

WWE misread its fanbase again. And instead of the Rumble being the first major jolt of an electric year, it's the impetus for anger and disappointment, not exactly the reaction a babyface's victory is supposed to have.