Roman Reigns Would Be Able to Recover from Loss to Daniel Bryan at WWE Fastlane

If the final bell tolls on Roman Reigns' chances of headlining WWE WrestleMania 31 this Sunday at WWE Fastlane, it would represent the end of a turbulent month for the powerhouse Samoan.

Winning the Royal Rumble was supposed to be Reigns' defining moment as a top babyface, but the reaction he endured from the vociferous Philadelphia crowd meant that it's been a rocky road since then.

If the WWE decides to pull the plug on Reigns facing Brock Lesnar at the showpiece event, it doesn't necessarily mean a terminal end to his main event chances, however. In fact, Reigns would be able to recover quite easily.

Although Brock Lesnar may stick around after WrestleMania, the likelihood is that whoever wins out of Reigns and Daniel Bryan at WWE Fastlane will go on and become WWE world heavyweight champion.

And if Lesnar does decide not to extend his contract with the company, the WWE will need a top heel to go toe-to-toe with Bryan in the months after WrestleMania, which can traditionally be a bit of a lull in terms of excitement.

It seems that the WWE is acting on what it saw at the Royal Rumble and slowly turning Reigns into a heel who doesn't care what anyone thinks of him. Having him continually feud with Bryan—the company's top babyface—is only going to further hammer that message home. We saw that with their huge brawl to close the final edition of Raw prior to Fastlane.

If Lesnar does leave the WWE, there's an interesting subplot to keep an eye on based around none other than Paul Heyman. Naturally, without Lesnar on the scene, Heyman will be looking for new talent to manage, and we may have had a clue about his interest in Reigns a few weeks ago on Raw.

Heyman gave more than a few clues that he was in awe of Reigns, not least when he burst onto the set during the proposed interview between champion and challenger on the Jan. 26 taping of Raw.

There, he immediately told Reigns he "respects" him and made a clear point of referring to Reigns as the "future of the business." Without Lesnar on TV, could Heyman and a heel Reigns form the most unlikely of alliances?

Think about it from a booking viewpoint. Bryan is the champion everyone adores, and Reigns is driven by a hatred of Bryan. Heyman is upset that Bryan managed to dethrone Lesnar and is keen to find someone else to bring Bryan down. It could be perfect.

Bryan will need a top heel to kick off another run as WWE world heavyweight champion. While someone such as Seth Rollins would be good, Reigns could easily bounce back from a heartbreaking defeat at Fastlane and become a legitimate title challenger.

Reigns proved during his time in The Shield that he is an effective heel. His menacing demeanor inside the ring and his range of powerful moves have the look and feel of a bad guy. Reigns is slowly starting to care less and less about what people want. He's very much working as his own guy.

There's also the potential of Reigns, upset that The Authority cost him his chance at the WrestleMania main event, going after The Authority. 

There are options for the WWE and Reigns should he suffer defeat this weekend. The beauty of this scenario is that Reigns is neither a certified babyface nor a heel at the moment. He's very much in the middle, and this Sunday represents an interesting crossroads.

Reigns could easily recover from a loss. In fact, he could use it to take his career to new heights in a completely different direction.