The Biggest Heel in WWE Right Now Is Creative Staleness

Between subpar booking and untimely injuries, WWE's stunning lack of credible antagonists has led to dwindling fan interest in the main event scene on SmackDown and Raw right now.

Drew McIntyre can't seem to win when it matters most, Seth Rollins was sidelined indefinitely amid his biggest push ever, and Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed can't ascend beyond a certain level until WWE is ready to pull the trigger on them.

Above all else, creative staleness on both brands has proved to be the biggest heel for WWE.

The final few months of the year are traditionally a lull period for wrestling, but basic storytelling and repetitive matches have been a recurring issue for WWE throughout 2025. Whenever something or someone has suddenly caught fire, they're almost immediately extinguished due to a failure to follow up accordingly.

The buzz surrounding R-Truth's abrupt departure and sudden rehiring wasn't capitalized on whatsoever, and John Cena's unprecedented heel turn was far from what it could have been. Many stars are in the same spots they were in at the beginning of the year with few fresh faces being afforded an opportunity to break out and move up the card.

There are multiple reasons why fan fatigue with the WWE product is higher than it's been in years, but the general sense of stagnation across the board has been the most prominent.

Examining the Dire State of SmackDown and Raw

Raw has more compelling content to offer from week to week than SmackDown, but the overall vision on both brands is an issue that must be addressed.

WWE can continue to rely on John Cena to cover its creative misgivings between now and the next Saturday Night's Main Event on Dec. 13 when he will wrestle his last match. A ton of television time will be devoted to the tournament determining his final opponent, but there's not a whole lot else to get excited about otherwise.

WarGames isn't as appealing as it was when the concept debuted on the main roster three years ago.

Early advances for Survivor Series on Nov. 29 indicate tickets are selling well and nearly at the allotted capacity, but now more than ever, the WarGames gimmick isn't necessary this year based on current storylines.

CM Punk being world heavyweight champion again does have potential, but there's nothing new about him being involved with The Vision and The Bloodline. He needs a consistent creative direction that doesn't fall victim to WWE's usual tropes such as teasing tension with Jey Uso and faction feuds that spawn forgettable tag team matches.

The Judgment Day have been stuck in midcard purgatory for many months and are apparently waiting for Liv Morgan to return from injury to move their story forward. Elsewhere on Raw, El Grande Americano is spinning his wheels and Becky Lynch's rivalry with Maxxine Dupri is progressing at a snail's pace.

SmackDown suffers from the same problems, yet it's in considerably worse shape.

Cody Rhodes has decisively defeated Drew McIntyre on two separate occasions to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship, but all signs point to them facing off for a third time at Survivor Series.

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Additionally, Damian Priest and Aleister Black remain at odds after five months, the Women's United States Championship has been horribly handled, the once-white-hot WWE Tag Team Championship scene has cooled off, and The MFTs are a dead-end group.

Only Sami Zayn and Ilja Dragunov's open challenges for the United States Championship have injected any sort of life into the blue brand these past few months.

With all of that said, it's hardly surprising that ticket sales are struggling for SmackDown and WWE as a whole. They're returning to the same cities they were in mere months ago with noticeably less fans in the buildings, and that should be a cause for concern.

How WWE's Booming Business Fading Can Ultimately Be a Positive

WWE's booming business, which it continues to reap the benefits of, allowed the company to get complacent creatively and think that anything it threw on television would work so long as the arenas were full and money was being made hand over fist.

However, TKO and the other powers that be at WWE are gradually coming to the realization that not everything they touch turns to gold.

Much of that has to due with what fans are being subjected to on Raw and SmackDown. If the shows were hotter, they would have more of an incentive to tune in or attend in person, even in spite of soaring ticket prices.

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It truly can be as simple as putting forth more of an effort on the creative front by first recognizing change is needed and then doing more to shake things up. That can include experimenting with newer names and giving the audience what it wants to see sooner instead of waiting until tentpole premium live events to deliver on meaningful moments.

It may not be in the foreseeable future, but there will eventually come a point when WWE will be forced to pivot if attendance numbers are drastically down and the vibe surrounding SmackDown and Raw is still apathetic.

WWE can't justify charging ludicrous prices for its product if it doesn't match the quality of the content it's producing. It's easier for the common fan to watch from the comfort of their home if the shows aren't must-see or memorable. The experience alone of being there to see it live is no longer worthwhile.

Triple H created plenty of goodwill with fans when he took the reins of WWE from Vince McMahon in the summer of 2022. TKO has since entered the picture and given the company more of a corporate feel with many of the moves that have been made both in front of and behind the camera. At its core, though, WWE remains more than capable of satisfying fans with strong shows when it wants to.

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Laziness shouldn't be tolerated. Record-high profits shouldn't be celebrated if the intelligence of the audience is insulted and the respect isn't reciprocated.

The key is motivation. All Elite Wrestling is an excellent alternative to WWE but has issues of its own at the moment, nor is its existence enough anymore to push WWE toward being better.

Not until WWE sees more of a decline in attendance, viewership and in its bottom line will there be real change. Hopefully for fans, that shift will be sooner rather than later.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.