WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from September 3

Every week on Bleacher Report, I take an in-depth look at WWE SmackDown to recap the action, offer analysis and grade the matches, segments and anything else that takes place on the show, as well as make a few predictions for future events.

The most noticeable thing about this week's show was the lack of main event talent. Seth Rollins and Randy Orton appear on SmackDown almost every week, but they were nowhere to be found on Thursday.

This allowed the tag team division and other deserving talents to take the spotlight. The New Day benefitted more than anyone else by being involved in both the opening and closing segments, and they made sure they brought their A game.

Let's take a look at everything that happened on this week's SmackDown.

The New Day

Usually, SmackDown and Raw open with a segment featuring the WWE world heavyweight champion or the person challenging them, but this week was different. In a refreshing change, the New Day opened the show with a promo directed at the Dudley Boyz.

They came to the ring with more protest signs that said things such as "#SaveTheTables." Xavier Woods got things going, but Kofi Kingston and Big E contributed just as much to this segment.

They listed several great things that have taken place on a table in what might be the most entertaining promo the group has ever delivered.

The Dudleys and Prime Time Players predictably came out to interrupt, but instead of teaming up against the heel champions, the babyfaces argued with each other until a match between the two teams started.

This was a great way to kick off the show. Everyone had great energy in this segment, and the New Day showed why they deserve the spot they find themselves in as champions.

Grade: A-

Notes and Highlights

• Is there anyone else who could have listened to them list off all the amazing things that have happened on tables for the whole show?
• It wouldn't be surprising if the hashtag "#SaveTheTables" caught on with people listing all the great things that have taken place on top of a table.
• It's great to see all three members of New Day carrying the weight on the mic. Woods is a great mouthpiece for the group, but all three members can be entertaining with the right material.

The Dudley Boyz vs. Prime Time Players

The first bout of the night started up before the first commercial break, which doesn't happen too often these days. There's usually a long promo, sometimes with a fight, and then we get to the matches.

Seeing the Dudleys mix it up with different tag teams is a great way to introduce them to the younger fans who might not be familiar with their work outside of TNA. Being gone for more than 10 years didn't hurt their popularity one bit based on the reactions they have been receiving since their return.

The two babyface teams had good chemistry, especially considering they have never wrestled each other before. Part of that comes from D-Von and Bubba Ray working with so many different people over the past two decades.

The ending was a bit anticlimactic, with the Dudleys hitting the 3D on Titus O'Neil to pick up the win, but other than that, it was a good effort from everyone involved.

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• The announce table had three commentators and all three members of the New Day doing commentary, but somehow it didn't seem crowded. Everyone did a good job not talking over each other. 
• Spike Dudley needs to show up for one night so we can see a six-man tag match between the New Day and Dudley Boyz.
• Woods had his trombone as New Day celebrated backstage. In a classic comedy moment, he let out of a low note of disapproval when Renee Young told them they would be facing Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns later in the show.

Stardust vs. Neville

We were scheduled to see Stardust square off against Neville for what would have been another exciting match in their series, but the Man Gravity Forgot never made it to the ring.

Konnor and Viktor of the Ascension attacked the high-flyer during his entrance. Stardust then revealed he is in cahoots with the former NXT tag champs before they laid out Neville with the Fall of Man.

These quick-attack segments can often be pointless, but this one actually made sense. Aligning Stardust with the Ascension might seem like a step down for Cody Rhodes, but it should actually be looked at as a step up for Konnor and Viktor.

Stardust is someone who has established himself as a capable leader, and his goofy-villain gimmick will mesh well with the struggling tag team. The only thing we need to know now is whom Neville will recruit to assist in his battle against this new trio of terror.

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• Trio of Terror would be a good name for this new stable. Share your ideas for stable names in the comments section.
• Neville should recruit the Lucha Dragons to his cause. Their high-flying gimmicks would complementary. And let's face it, the masks would help them fit into this comic book-style feud perfectly.
• King Barrett seemingly has no interest in taking revenge against Stardust for attacking him on the Raw following SummerSlam.

Sheamus vs. Cesaro

Cesaro had his ribs wrapped up to sell an injury suffered at the hands of Kevin Owens during their match on Raw. This gave Sheamus an easy target to focus on throughout the contest.

These two powerhouses have had some physical encounters over the years, and this was no different. Cesaro uses more risky moves than Sheamus, but for the most part, their styles are similar. They both rely on hard strikes and power moves to defeat their opponents.

Sheamus picked up the win with a Brogue Kick to cap off a hard-hitting match. Had they been given just a little more time, they easily could have produced an instant classic.

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• Cesaro is the only person in recent memory who can consistently lose clean while becoming more and more popular.
• Cesaro pulled out a couple of impressive counters in this one. Turning an Irish Curse into a cross-face submission was especially impressive.
• These two could have a good feud, but this was probably not the start of a new program. Cesaro and Owens will likely continue to feud through Night of Champions before moving on.

MizTV

The Miz hosted the latest episode of his talk show, MizTV, with Summer Rae, Lana and Dolph Ziggler as his guests. The main topic of conversation was Summer seeing Ziggler naked during Raw.

Summer claimed Ziggler tried to seduce her while producing some crocodile tears to sell her story. She said she has had an on and off relationship with Ziggler and showed footage of the two making out in the ring from 2014 to back up her claim.

It didn't take long for the Ravishing Russian to attack the Lana wannabe before leaving without Ziggler. This segment had some entertaining moments, but it did little to advance the storyline. No new information was revealed, but everyone played their part well.

It was smart to keep Rusev out of this so the focus was all on Lana and Summer. WWE is obviously working toward the two women having a match of some kind in the near future.

Grade: C+

Notes and Highlights

• Summer Rae has gotten much better since aligning herself with Rusev. The role suits her well.
• You could tell Summer had a black eye underneath a layer of makeup.
• This was the closest MizTV has come to being an episode of The Jerry Springer Show.
• WWE usually censors the "B" word on SmackDown, but Summer used it twice without being bleeped.
• Ziggler may hold the record for kissing the most WWE Divas on television.

R-Truth vs. Bo Dallas

After we saw a replay of Bo Dallas being taken to Suplex City by Brock Lesnar, Dallas took on R-Truth in a quick singles match.

Dallas was more aggressive than usual, especially after Truth couldn't stop laughing at the footage of Lesnar destroying him on the post-SummerSlam Raw.

Dallas picked up the win with a new finisher, but that wasn't good enough for him. He continued to beat on Truth after the match was over until he was satisfied.

This was too quick to be a great match, but it made for some decent filler. It's just too bad neither of these men looks like he is in line for a push anytime soon.

Grade: C-

Notes and Highlights

• Dallas' new finisher is a rope-hung swinging neckbreaker. It's much better than his old bulldog finisher because it looks more dangerous.
• Dallas needs a tag team partner. It's the only way he won't get lost in the shuffle.

Charlotte vs. Tamina

Team PCB had a confrontation with Team Bella backstage before Charlotte went to the ring to battle Tamina. Charlotte told Nikki she has petitioned the Authority to make their title match happen before Nikki becomes the longest-reigning Divas champion of all time.

The match that followed was like one of the Divas matches we used to see before this whole revolution began. It was quick, a little sloppy and didn't live up to the quality we have been seeing from the division in recent weeks.

The one positive thing that can be said about this match is that there was no outside interference from the four women at ringside. A clean finish is almost always better than a dirty finish. Charlotte picked up the win but gained little by doing so.

Grade: D+

Notes and Highlights

• Charlotte totally left Becky Lynch hanging for a fist bump during a backstage interview.
• Charlotte and Tamina have both had a tough week, so you have to give them credit for putting personal issues aside and performing as planned.
• Is anyone else getting a vibe from Paige that she is going to turn on Charlotte and Lynch soon?

The New Day vs. Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns

The main event of the evening was a tag team match featuring Reigns and Ambrose taking on Kofi Kingston and Big E of the New Day.

The best thing about this combination is that it was fresh. SmackDown often feels like it's just a bunch of Raw rematches, so it was nice to see a main event that had nothing to do with a current feud.

All four men worked together to put on a good show. Reigns and Big E matched power, while Ambrose and Kingston took care of the high-risk offense.

Woods ended up causing a disqualification to give Reigns and Ambrose the win. While a DQ decision is almost never satisfying, it was actually the right way to end this match. Neither team can afford a clean loss right now, so it worked out best for everyone.

Ambrose and Reigns called out the Wyatt Family, but the bearded brawlers only addressed them from the big screen instead of coming out for a fight.

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• Everyone was talking about how Seth Rollins looked like the white Power Ranger at SummerSlam, but the New Day's outfits are much closer to Tommy Oliver's garb than Rollins'.
• Woods shouldn't use the trombone too often. It was hilarious the first time he used it, but it will get old really fast. Leave it to WWE to take something good and beat it into the ground.
• Ambrose and Reigns may as well pursue the tag titles if WWE isn't going to give either man a singles championship anytime soon. They could be a great addition to what is already a good roster of teams.

Final Thoughts and Predictions

This week's SmackDown may have had a few missteps, but the majority of the show was definitely worth watching.

For the first time in a while, it didn't feel like an episode filled with a bunch of rematches. Most of the bouts were between people who have either never fought each other or haven't in quite some time.

Cesaro and Sheamus put on the best performance of the night, but the main event tag team match also produced some entertaining moments.

Charlotte versus Tamina was a low point, but at least the segments before and after the match helped push the current Divas title feud.

One entertaining segment WWE never uploaded to YouTube was an interview between Renee Young and Kevin Owens. The chemistry those two have makes their every interaction hilarious.

It was kind of surprising not to see Seth Rollins, Randy Orton or Ryback, but their absences gave others a chance to shine, especially in the opening and closing moments of the show.

Predictions

• Night of Champions will feature a triple threat Tables match for the tag titles.
• Neville will bring in another tag team to fight Stardust and the Ascension.
• Lana and Rusev will be back together before Survivor Series.
• Paige will turn on Charlotte and Lynch sooner than you think.
• Rollins will leave Night of Champions a title down.

What did you think of this week's SmackDown?

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.