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Comparing WWE Superstars to Your Favorite NFL Team and Players
As the two most prominent brands in their fields, WWE and NFL have more in common than one might expect.
Both WWE and the NFL feature heroes, villains, beloved icons, and overexposed personalities fans love to root against.
For instance, lifelong Chicago Bears fan Seth Rollins is like the Green Bay Packers: consistently great, a threat to win a championship most years, with an unquestioned place in the history of their respective industries.
The Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles kick off the 2025 NFL season Thursday night against the Dallas Cowboys and in preparation for that and WWE Wrestlepalooza on ESPN September 20, here are some pro wrestling superstars and their NFL counterparts.
Randy Orton Is Matthew Stafford
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Matthew Stafford is the old gunslinger, a fearless thrower of the ball for the Los Angeles Rams, a team that once shared the same hometown as his WWE counterpart from St. Louis.
Stafford has seen and done it all, including a victory in Super Bowl LVI. At 37, though, his age and recurring back injuries have started to impact his career.
Like Stafford, Orton is closer to the end of his career than its beginning. He has also achieved all there is to in his profession and been plagued by a back injury, but he has developed a reputation for being tougher than most.
Both have been so good for so long that their greatness sometimes flies under the radar in favor of newer, flashier stars.
There are only so many shots at championship gold left for either. Stafford is surrounded by one of his most talented teams in years entering the 2025 season, while Orton is potentially gearing up for one last great title run.
Both should be valued for their excellence now before they exit the spotlight for the final time.
John Cena Is Josh Allen
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John Cena is the prototypical good guy. He is handsome, well-behaved, mature beyond his years, mostly says the right things and has been the hero WWE desperately needed since rising to prominence in 2004.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is also all of those things.
Since arriving as QB1 for the franchise, Allen has injected life into the organization, given the fans hope and emerged not only as the face of the Buffalo squad but also of the NFL.
Allen understands the importance of his role as league MVP, and represents himself, his team and the league with dignity, grace and a maturity far beyond his years.
The one difference? Cena is preparing to exit the spotlight while Allen, 29, has not yet peaked.
Carmelo Hayes Is Caleb Williams
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Carmelo Hayes was a No. 1 draft pick for SmackDown in 2024. Caleb Williams was the top pick in that year's NFL draft, heightening expectations for a player many had labeled a franchise-saver.
However, both have struggled to meet expectations, raising more questions than answers about how they've been used.
Hayes has dealt with uninspired storylines in WWE, which has left some wondering if he'll ever get the same opportunities he had on NXT. This is despite his strong in-ring performances and magnetic charisma.
Williams' first year in the NFL was defined by poor coaching, which failed to recognize his strengths and accentuate them while hiding his game's weaknesses.
That is not all on coaching, though, and the USC product still needs to do his part to improve with every game, but it was clear last season he was not being utilized to the best of his abilities.
Both still have the potential and ability to be major stars of the future. But with high draft positions come great expectations, and they have struggled to meet them so far.
LA Knight Is the Baltimore Ravens
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The Baltimore Ravens have entered the last six NFL seasons with championship aspirations. They have had just one losing season since quarterback Lamar Jackson entered the league, and they have been a perennial playoff team and Super Bowl contender ever since.
Despite high expectations, the team has fallen short. Questions linger about whether Jackson can sustain his greatness through the regular season, succeed in the playoffs, and keep the championship window open.
Conversely, Knight has been a legitimate main event talent and incredibly popular with fans for the better part of the last three years.
He has featured at the top of the card but failed to win the top prizes in WWE, most recently in a Fatal 4-Way match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Clash in Paris.
Like those who question when, or if, the Ravens will ever hoist the Lombardi Trophy with Jackson, there are real questions surrounding Knight and whether he is ever destined to be the guy in WWE.
Dominik Mysterio and LIV Morgan Are Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift
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The Kansas City Chiefs' Travis Kelce and pop megastar Taylor Swift's whirlwind romance has engulfed the NFL, bringing together the worlds of sport and popular culture.
While they do not share the same otherworldly level of celebrity as Kelce and Swift, WWE's answer to the most talked-about couple are The Judgment Day's Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan.
Morgan became part of the group—and Mysterio's storyline partner—through her feud with Rhea Ripley. Since then, she has reigned as women's world champion while Dom has risen to new heights as intercontinental champion.
While their on-screen pairing has taken a bit of a hiatus thanks to a shoulder injury that has kept Morgan out of action, there is no on-screen pairing more likely to get a passionate reaction from fans than them.
Like Swift and Kelce, both are immensely talented and have proved to be successful on the biggest stages in their professions.
Cody Rhodes Is Patrick Mahomes
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Undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes is the face of professional wrestling in 2025. He is a second-generation professional wrestler who forged his own path to become a massive star in his industry.
The American Nightmare has achieved success at the highest level, winning championship gold on the grandest stage professional wrestling has to offer.
In the process, he has earned some detractors. Still, his passionate fans continue to show up and support him everywhere he goes.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is also a second-generation athlete, his father having played for the New York Mets' 2000 World Series team.
A talented baseball player, he could have taken a comparatively easy route and potentially been a star in MLB, with the guidance and help of his dad.
Instead, he became a star in football. Since being drafted by the Chiefs in 2017, he has rewritten history books, won NFL MVP honors and played in five of the last six Super Bowls.
Along the way he has been met with criticism and claims of preferential treatment by the league and officials, but he has been the face of professional football over the last decade.
Both men have also been the centerpieces of documentaries, with Rhodes' currently available on Peacock and Mahomes and the Chiefs' dynastic run at the center of a recent Prime Video production.
Logan Paul Is the Dallas Cowboys
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Love them or hate them, Logan Paul and the Dallas Cowboys are more alike than not.
The social media star and "America's Team" do not need to win to remain in the headlines. Both have huge fanbases but also hear their names discussed with disdain by those who take exception to their fame.
Every offseason, the Cowboys are at the center of NFL discussions. In 2025, they'll be especially talked about after a stunning trade sent All-Pro edge-rusher Micah Parsons to the Packers—even though the team has modest championship expectations.
Paul has lost more matches than he has won in his WWE career and competed against the likes of John Cena, Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns, but his brashness and undeniable star allow him to stay relevant.
That he, like Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, has a tendency to create controversy does not hurt his ability to remain prominent.
Both the Dallas franchise and Paul are disliked as much as they are celebrated, making them incredibly polarizing but always in the spotlight.
