WWE NXT Big Board: Updated Prospect Rankings and Analysis for September 10

You know that WWE's NXT women's division is in a strange place when Dana Brooke emerges as one of the top contenders for Bayley's championship.

After the mass exodus to the main roster that took Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch to Raw and SmackDown, NXT is mostly left with raw and unproven female prospects. Despite Brooke's steady improvement, she hasn't shown that she can take any of those women's places. Still, the company has few options to send after Bayley, so a not-yet-ready Brooke may soon be in line for a championship contest.

The "Total Diva," Peyton Royce and Billie Kay were all in action on Wednesday's NXT.

Neither one of them did anything to challenge Bayley or Alexa Bliss for the top spots on the female prospect rankings. They instead mostly tread water, something that needs to change before Nia Jax debuts and Kana arrives.

Meanwhile, Bull Dempsey's gimmick held him down, and a vignette showcased Tye Dillinger's potential.  

The following is a look at where those two men now sit on the NXT big board and where the developmental brand's other wrestlers rank in terms of being poised for success on the main roster. Ring work, mic skills, look, gimmick and charisma all factor in when ranking NXT's best talents.

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Finn Balor	5'11'', 190 lbs	Top-tier presence, captivating in the ring, marketable.
2.	Samoa Joe	6'2'', 279 lbs	Versatile in-ring performer, great presence, strong mic work.
3.	Sami Zayn	6'1'', 205 lbs	Stellar showman, fun move set, great crowd connection, inconsistent talker.
4.	Tyler Breeze	6'0'', 190 lbs	Excellent heel work, makes most of gimmick, not elite in the ring, good presence.
5.	Apollo Crews	6'1'', 240 lbs	Highly athletic, explosive offense, character still in progress, mic work needs improvement.
6.	Hideo Itami	5'9'', 182 lbs	Showing more charisma, making progress as mic worker, electric in the ring.
7.	Jason Jordan	6'3'', 245 lbs	Impressive power, growing presence, needs to add to move set.
8.	Colin Cassady	6'10'', 276 lbs	Excels at working crowd, great size and look, solid charisma, in-ring work improving.
9.	Simon Gotch	6'1'', 221 lbs	Continues to work gimmick into move set, fun ring work, good presence.
10.	Solomon Crowe	5'10'', 207 lbs	Gimmick headed in goofy direction, versatile in the ring, strong mic work.
11.	Baron Corbin	6'8'', 275 lbs	Great look, lots of potential, inconsistent intensity, still a project.
12.	Bull Dempsey	6'2'', 300 lbs	Stuck with ill-fitting comedy gimmick, strong brawler, compelling talker when serious.
13.	Tye Dillinger	6'3'', 223 lbs	"Perfect 10" gimmick allowing him to excel, good showman, solid in the ring.
14.	Enzo Amore	5'11'', 200 lbs	Great connection with crowd, elite charisma, low-level ring work.
15.	Chad Gable	5'8'', 187 lbs	Smooth ring work, improving charisma, good energy.
16.	Scott Dawson	5'10'', 224 lbs	Excellent ring psychology, good intensity, doesn't have much "it" factor.
17.	Aiden English	6'3'', 215 lbs	Solid charisma, decent ring work, Gotch overshadowing him.
18.	Dash Wilder	5'10'', 222 lbs	Aggressive ring work, good build, below-average charisma.
19.	Murphy	5'11'', 227 lbs	Explosive athlete, underwhelming charisma, showing improvement as a striker.
20.	Blake	6'1'', 240 lbs	Solid athlete, inconsistent ring work, so-so presence.

Prospects just outside the top 20: Mojo Rawley, Sawyer Fulton, Marcus Louis

A Bull in Limbo

While not wearing a neon headband or wiping potato chip crumbs from his beard anymore, the version of Dempsey that competed in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic on Wednesday was still too goofy to maximize his talents.

He grinned on his way to the ring. He slapped his belly to match the rhythm of the chants the Full Sail University faithful delivered. He was still treated like a bumbling fool and ultimately costing him and Tyler Breeze a win thanks to his clumsiness.

Under this silly shtick lies a potentially powerful heel.

Fans saw glimpses of that and his brawling acumen when the bout leaned more toward intense action rather than something played for laughs. Until WWE makes use of his strengths, Dempsey's stock will continue to drop. He's just plain bad as a smiling babyface.

Perfect Gimmick for Tye Dillinger

Dillinger didn't step into the ring on Wednesday. He still managed some upward movement, though, thanks to a slickly produced vignette highlighting his new "Perfect 10" gimmick.

The video showed just how much he has embraced this persona. Dillinger seems to be having fun with the new character, and it fits him like a well-tailored suit.

This is no one-dimensional act either. Sure, he has the "10" signs and his now-trademark hand gesture to get the crowd to shout "10!" along with him, but there's more to this than that, as we saw in the clip.

Dillinger's gimmick looks to be in the vein of the classic braggart heel. It's something that can be adapted for different scenarios, leaning more toward humor sometimes and being a vicious narcissist at others.

The fact that WWE produced this at all is a great sign for him.

It shows that the company is taking him seriously. You don't see Marcus Louis getting his own promo video.

Other Notes

In a short backstage interview, Apollo Crews showed himself to be highly likable. He has a standout smile and an aura that has "babyface" written all over it.

He will have to showcase more personality down the road, though. The clearer idea fans have of who he is, the easier it will be to invest in him.

Finn Balor teamed up with Samoa Joe in a match outside the normal NXT arena. They instead took on The Lucha Dragons in a larger venue with a WWE-style production. Both men fit on the big stage.

Picturing both of them battling Superstars on WWE pay-per-view requires no imagination at all.

During the short clips NXT showed of some of the tag tournament matches that occurred at live events, fans got a peek at Elias Samson as The Drifter. He carried a guitar in the ring and looked like something straight out of a '70s rock festival.

This is the kind of gimmick that will get him noticed, but it's unclear how much staying power it has. Tyler Breeze managed to work his male model gimmick into a means to success. 

It's going to take some hard work for Samson to follow his lead.

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Notes
1.	Bayley	5'6''	Great connection with crowd, excellent in-ring storyteller, highly marketable to kids.
2.	Alexa Bliss	5'1''	Heel work improving, presence growing.
3.	Carmella	5'5''	Good showmanship, expanding in-ring repertoire, charismatic.
4.	Peyton Royce	5'7''	Solid mat work, in need of stronger gimmick.
5.	Dana Brooke	5'3''	Cutting back on overacting, excellent athlete, stiff on interviews, still raw in the ring.
6.	Billie Kay	5'8''	Underwhelming presence, solid worker, showmanship needs fine-tuning.

"Introducing" Peyton Royce

Despite having wrestled on NXT before, the company billed Royce's bout on Wednesday night as her debut, and the announcers treated this as her first outing.

Credit: WWE.com

The issues with her at this point are mostly gimmick-centered. This version of her is too generic. It's as if NXT is trying to make her into the typical "look at me, I'm sexy" kind of Diva. She didn't look comfortable in that role at all.

She did, however, look rather comfy once the bell rang. Royce showed off smooth mat work and looks to be someone the company can depend on for consistent performances in the ring. 

Her long legs make her kicks stand out. She has strong technical skills as well, making her grappling look natural.

She and Carmella put on a technically sound match that didn't have much energy. The crowd didn't appear to be into either woman. 

Working a faster pace and playing to the crowd more will help that in the future. But the key to connecting with the audience will be making Royce stand out from a character standpoint.

Up-and-Down Dana

Brooke shows promise just before she shows how much progress she still has to make. Every performance is a mixed bag. 

In a backstage promo before her match with Billie Kay, she showed a lack of genuine intensity. There was no real connection with the audience here. Her words often come off as hollow, as if she's simply reading lines off a page, not actually feeling them.

However, she has toned down her overacting some, which is a big step for her.

In the ring, she showed good energy and decent showmanship. The biggest positive here was her athleticism. Brooke displayed that with impressive moves like a leg scissors while doing a push-up or doing a headstand as she rammed her foot into her foe's neck.

She still comes off as though she's trying too hard, though. The Total Diva has struggled to find the balance between being believable and demonstrative.

The art of being a heel is still one that she's learning. In reality, Brooke should be developing that art off screen, but her athleticism has NXT convinced that she's ready for the spotlight and maybe even title contention before long.