WWE Is Failing to Utilize Daniel Bryan to His Fullest Heading into WrestleMania

WrestleMania is the biggest show of the year for the WWE, but the lack of a top storyline for former world champion Daniel Bryan just a few weeks from the pay-per-view proves the company is failing to utilize one of its top wrestlers.

Putting Roman Reigns over physically and verbally shouldn’t be Bryan’s top priority just over a month before WrestleMania 31.

Bryan is the most talented all-around performer on the roster right now. Not only is he one of the most gifted technical wrestlers that has ever graced the WWE, but he also understands the business and can tell believable stories in the ring. Regardless of who he is feuding at the time, Bryan can always carry the matches and put on entertaining shows for the fans.

As if his in-ring skills weren’t enough to launch Bryan into the main event scene, the crowd support he gets is off the charts. With only John Cena having a consistent crowd reaction similar to his right now, the fact that Bryan has no discernible feud leading into WrestleMania is a huge waste of his talent.

Bryan spent the last several weeks fighting Reigns, but he was likely just injected into that storyline after the Royal Rumble to avoid fan backlash. Reigns winning the Royal Rumble and going on to beat Bryan at Fastlane proves WWE did not deviate from their original plan.

The loss for Bryan also likely indicates there was no major storyline planned for him this year; he was essentially forgotten. A devastating injury to his neck and shoulder cost Bryan several months of his career, and the WWE did not have a timetable for his return. While the company had no choice but to plan the show as if he wouldn’t be ready to return, the fact that there were no backup concepts in case he was medically cleared shows a lack of confidence and urgency with the success of Bryan.

If Cena returned from a long-term injury in similar fashion after being stripped of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, the 15-time champion would likely be main eventing this year’s WrestleMania. Bryan doesn’t even have a challenger yet.

When CM Punk spoke on Colt Cabana’s The Art of Wrestling podcast (h/t WrestleZone.com), he shared his opinion that WWE changed the main event scene last year following his departure. According to Punk, Bryan was launched into the storyline against The Authority as a way to get back at him after he quit. Regardless of why it happened, the last-second changes resulted in two matches at WrestleMania for Bryan and a great moment in his career.

Unfortunately, the WWE failed to follow up on Bryan's success by booking him against Kane in an awful first storyline, and it has dropped the ball since he returned from his injury. Now all eyes have shifted to what Bryan will eventually do at the biggest PPV of the year.

The most likely answer is Sheamus. The two men have been rumored to fight again for two years and the chatter has picked up once again, per PWInsider.com (via WrestleZone.com). The promos for the return of the Celtic Warrior appear to be teasing a possible heel turn, and a match between a face Bryan and a heel Sheamus would be fun to watch in the ring.

The problem is there is no storyline at all and it will be hard to build one with only a few weeks left until WrestleMania. Both men could be the top performers in the world, but without a proper reason to care about the combatants and why they are fighting, the interest from the WWE Universe will be dulled.

It’s a shame that the WWE doesn’t better utilize Bryan. He can put on great matches with anyone and tell compelling stories the fans want to support, but the company has given him absolutely nothing to work with heading into the most important event of the year.

Bryan will have to overcome the odds once again.

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