Dean Ambrose's Career at a Crossroads Due to Poor Booking from WWE

Dean Ambrose was not booked to appear at WWE Battleground. While missing one event is not necessarily the end of a guy's career, it is a big deal when he was booked against the world champion at the previous event.

His absence did not go unnoticed, as many fans wondered where he was and why he was not used. While the WWE faithful debate the issue, the fact is Ambrose is standing still because of poor booking.

It wasn't always this way; his rivalry with Seth Rollins was a good one. It kept him on the main event scene and in the world title picture. He was seen as a true threat to Rollins' championship reign and a potential candidate to dethrone his former Shield teammate as the top titleholder in the company.

Ambrose pushed Rollins to his physical and mental limits, becoming his toughest adversary next to Brock Lesnar. An Ambrose victory would have been poetic justice, especially considering the way Rollins betrayed his Shield brothers and aligned with Triple H to win the belt. It seemed like the perfect rivalry and was beneficial for both men.

But since that time, Ambrose has not been used as a top contender. Instead, he has been booked in meaningless matches against Bo Dallas and backed up Roman Reigns when he needed it. While the former has done nothing for him, the latter has at least kept him in the spotlight.

He and Reigns make a nice combo, as they have real chemistry as a team. Their Butch and Sundance routine has gotten over with many fans who miss the Shield era and enjoy the concept of the buddy-cop movie.

Ambrose fits in this gimmick, and the two could easily take a run at the tag team titles. It would work for him and is perhaps a good move for both.

However, that may not be what his fans envisioned for him. In theory, Ambrose should be a consistent main event star. He's done everything asked of him and has gotten over with the fans who pay to see him. He can work, cut promos and has a character that is both compelling and fun.

Ambrose dives in headfirst regardless of how badly he's outnumbered, and fans respond to that. His rebellious nature puts him in direct conflict with the Authority, and he has become the antihero WWE needs to buck the system.

Fans respect him for his work and follow him because they know he will do whatever it takes to get the job done. By all rights, he should be among the elite in WWE.

But the booking is not right at the moment, and that must change if he is to move ahead. Rollins is at the top, and Reigns is a work in progress; he worked the main event of WrestleMania 31. Ambrose has yet to truly realize his full potential in the company.

Ambrose needs solid feuds against guys who can challenge him on a physical level. He needs to win those feuds and needs to do it convincingly. He should go back and look at his routine in the ring and ask if it's too routine. Is there anything he can add to his repertoire, anything that can help him stand out even more from the rest of the roster?

Ambrose needs the company to get behind him. Putting him in the ring with talents who can do nothing for him is a waste of his time. Allowing him more room to grow by pairing him with Reigns is fine for the short term, but in the long term, not so much.

He needs his own identity independent of Reigns and with a definite focus on what's ahead. No one else is doing what he does, and WWE should capitalize on that; he is not the garden-variety WWE Superstar the company typically features.

He stands out from the rest and brings something different to the game. He has the ability to come through in high-pressure situations, and he can do it with a wild-eyed intensity only he possesses. Ambrose deserves a bit more than he's getting, but whether he gets it on a consistent basis remains to be seen.