WWE Programming's Best Match for Week of June 20

The last several weeks have seen WWE forced to keep things interesting thanks to a packed schedule of pay-per-views and special events. Now that things are slowing down, there are signs that the television product is being weakened as a result.

We're seeing fewer standout matches and less direction in terms of ongoing storytelling. The constant need to build to the next event does offer up its own challenges, but for the most part, it makes for much more captivating television.

All that being said, there were a few bright spots in an otherwise perfunctory week. Here are the most essential bouts from the past seven days in WWE.

Honourable Mentions

Anyone who's been watching WWE for some time will be aware that there are several pairings that are wheeled out whenever the company needs a reliably excellent match to fill time on one of its television broadcasts. This week's edition of SmackDown saw two such bouts.

The first was between Dolph Ziggler and Sheamus, who have squared off countless times over the last few years. Fortunately, both men are at the top of their game at present, so this particular encounter was a very good one.

The second was SmackDown's main event of Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins, which needs very little said about it. We just saw these two have a sensational pair of matches at Elimination Chamber and Money in the Bank, and this was similarly demonstrative of what both men can do in the ring.

SmackDown also featured a very enjoyable eight-man tag match where Bo Dallas joined The New Day to take on The Prime Time Players and The Lucha Dragons. There's a lot of talent in the tag division at present, and this bout used several of them to full effect.

Match of the Week for Week of June 20: Finn Balor vs. Rhyno on NXT

When NXT first began to introduce older talent like Rhyno, there were worries that the stars of yesteryear would snatch away the television time of the stars of tomorrow.

However, that really hasn't turned out to be the case. Rhyno is an excellent example of how familiar faces can be used to great effect in NXT, and his run through the promotion should be taken as the blueprint for how to utilize such talent in the future.

Credit: WWE.com

Rhyno has been the perfect opponent for Finn Balor as the Demon of County Wicklow attempts to snatch the NXT Championship from Kevin Owens in Tokyo next weekend.

The Manbeast's end goal has always been a shot at the title for himself, so his intentions when attacking Balor over the course of recent weeks have been very clear. Balor was in need of a final test before his title match, and this was the ideal solution.

Rhyno's unbridled power and strength—not to mention his often-decisive Gore—are in sharp contrast to the style of Balor. This isn't the most obvious pairing for a great match, but the end product was somehow more than the sum of its parts.

A good build contributed to how engaging the match was, but it really did stand on its own two feet. While Rhyno was known as part of the hardcore division for much of his initial run with WWE, he's shown on NXT that he's just as capable of engaging a crowd within the rules of normal competition.

This match was competitive from the opening bell, with both men putting forth the best of their offence. When styles differ as much as they did in this pairing, that can often result in a clash that detracts from the bout, but that wasn't the case here.

Instead, we saw a great showing from the No. 1 contender to the NXT Championship and yet more evidence that Rhyno has earned his spot on the NXT roster. This main event kept a lot of pots on the boil while being a hugely satisfying end to the broadcast in its own right.

What was your favourite match this week? Did Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus have you glued to your screen? Were you wowed by Kane vs. Ryback? Did the Hype Bros. show you the future of tag team wrestling? Let us know in the comments section below.