WWE Armchair Booking: How to Maximize the Prime Time Players-New Day Feud

Where WWE failed with The Prime Time Players' win over The New Day at Money in the Bank was with the lack of emotional power drawn from the tag team titles' changing hands.

Rectifying that is key to making the most out of this rivalry. The babyfaces need to lose their titles and suffer aplenty en route to getting them back. That's how to make the clash between these teams a bigger, more memorable part of the show.

As happy as Titus O'Neil and Darren Young's fans had to be, the team's moment of triumph felt hollow. Blame a rushed climb to the top of the division, a feud that was hurried along and a win that came before true struggle.

The Prime Time Players spent the past few months making fun of their rivals in a series of vignettes. O'Neil and Young donned shoulder pads, wigs and pink masks to mock the division's other squads. When they did their damage to those teams in the ring, though, the battle was too often on too small a stage.

From after they reunited in February to when they stepped inside the Elimination Chamber in May, The Prime Time Players had a strong record of 7-3, according to CageMatch.net. The issue is that five of those wins came during episodes of either Superstars or Main Event, two shows that most casual fans skip.

Making their next impressive run more prominent is the smart move. The first step, however, to telling the best story between them and The New Day is to follow Young and O'Neil's celebration with a setback.

The Theft

The New Day's reign ended just as the team was gathering some real momentum. The members had gotten more comfortable with their characters, finding new ways to irk the fans. They were loud, overconfident and wore big, condescending grins.

WWE's best bet is to crown The New Day champions once more and make Young and O'Neil begin the climb to contention again. Done right, The New Day can look dangerous and despicable, while The Prime Time Players wouldn't so much lose the titles as suffer Xavier Woods and Company's theft of them.

In one scenario, WWE would set up a match between the two teams at Battleground.

Beforehand, The Prime Time Players have dominated The New Day in singles action and six-man tag bouts. The former champs then go into Battleground flustered and looking like they have little chance at retaining. Woods, though, promises to outsmart his foes.

"By the end of Battleground, we will be clapping, and we will be champions," he says.

The plan he alludes to involves an ambush. As Woods and Kofi Kingston wait for their opponents in the ring, The Prime Time Players make their way down the entrance ramp. Big E charges out with a steel chair in hand. He cracks it against Young's left shoulder.

Before O'Neil can fight Big E off, The New Day's muscle wallops Young several times in the same spot with that chair.

Young soon clutches that arm as he stands on the ring apron. He watches as O'Neil fights valiantly but is eventually worn down by Woods and Kingston making quick tags. 

Credit: WWE.com

A drained, beaten O'Neil eventually tags in Young, hoping for the best. Young manages some offense with just one arm. It looks as if he might pull off the upset, but Kingston nails him in the bad arm with a Trouble in Paradise.

That forces Young to the floor in pain. Kingston yanks on the injured arm until he taps.

This route would make Young look gutsy, soften the blow of his loss and showcase The New Day as villains. It would create a dramatic match that acts as the catalyst for a new story arc, one of The Prime Time Players working their way back to the gold.

The Chase

The next night on Raw, a hobbled Young and an angry O'Neil stand in the ring and demand to have their rematch at SummerSlam.

Woods leads The New Day out to meet them, holding a stack of paper in his hand. He chuckles as he steps in front of his foes.

"You're not getting a rematch, gentlemen. It says so right here," he says, handing over the papers.

He explains that this is the contract they signed for the title match. Woods admits he made some "slight" changes just before both teams put their names on it. The contract includes a note that The Prime Time Players waive the right to an immediate rematch.

"You'll just have to earn it the hard way, it seems," Kingston tells them.

Over the course of the next few weeks, that's exactly what The Prime Time Players do. They win difficult matches against The Lucha Dragons, The Ascension and a pairing of Kane and Sheamus.

Meanwhile, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan are on a hot streak as well. They topple the competition just as O'Neil and Young do. The Authority eventually announces that Harper and Rowan will take on The Prime Time Players in a 2-out-of-3 Falls match to determine the No. 1 contender.

Credit: WWE.com

The match is tied at one fall apiece when Young sends Rowan reeling with a series of dropkicks. O'Neil then picks up the bearded bruiser, readying him for Clash of the Titus. 

The New Day makes sure that move doesn't happen. Kingston and Woods go after O'Neil, while Big E brawls with Harper. The referee is forced to announce the match a no-contest.

The champs think they have escaped a daunting challenge, but The Authority instead announces that both teams will get a title shot. To determine who gets first crack, they will compete in a Beat the Clock Challenge.

The Prime Time Players just edge out Harper and Rowan by beating their foes seconds faster. The Night of Champions title match is set.

The Cage

The New Day tries to ambush The Prime Time Players backstage again, this time on SmackDown. Young avoids the chair shot this time, and a brawl ensues.

The champs soon get desperate. They pay The Ascension to hurt their challengers one night on Raw. O'Neil and Young end up in the trainer's room with taped ribs. They refuse to quit, though.

"Banged up or not, we're coming after those titles," O'Neil says. 

The Prime Time Players come armed with chairs when they meet The New Day for a live contract signing. When the signatures are complete, Young grabs a mic and tells Woods and Company that they had a little something tacked on.

The title match is set to be inside a steel cage.

Credit: WWE.com

Flustered, The New Day flips over the table inside the ring before storming out. The group is caught on a later show trying to bribe a referee. Veteran ref Charles Robinson laughs off the offer.

Woods assures his teammates that they will outsmart their challengers.  

During the bout, Big E pushes the referee aside and unlocks the cage door. He's about to step inside when Neville comes rushing at him. Neville sends the big man flying into the stands.

Losing the fight, Woods looks up at the entrance ramp as if he's waiting for help to arrive. It does in the form of The Ascension. Viktor and Konnor stomp their way down to the ring as the announcers wonder if they are on The New Day's payroll.

Credit: WWE.com

Just before they enter the cage, John "Bradshaw" Layfield starts to get up from the announce desk. "Hold on Cole, they paid us to do a job, too."

JBL tears off his suit to reveal an Acolyte Protection Agency shirt. Ron Simmons soon emerges from the crowd to stand next to him. They stand guard and mix it up with The Ascension as The Prime Time Players finish off the champs.

Telling this story would allow WWE to include several Superstars. It would show The New Day to be crooked, typically slippery heels. And in the end, The Prime Time Players have a much more arduous journey this time around.

Their second title win would certainly be much more electric as a result.

Then WWE would already have its next chapter ready to go. Rowan and Harper would secure the next title shot, kicking off a new feud for the babyface champs.