WWE NXT Big Board: Updated Prospect Rankings and Analysis for October 1

Clearly not every showcase of WWE NXT prospects can be about advancement. Disappointing performances were the order of the day on Wednesday's show.

As NXT hyped and added bouts to TakeOver: Respect, Enzo Amore was among those who worsened his stock.

It's more and more clear that his future is not in the ring but at ringside. He was the least impressive figure in the tag team tournament match on Wednesday night. Without a mic in hand, he's Thor without his hammer.

Amore was not alone in underwhelming the audience. Tyler Breeze had a letdown performance. Peyton Royce failed to make much of an impact.

The following is a look at where those wrestlers and the rest of the NXT crew rank in terms of being a viable, promising prospect for the main roster. Ring skills, mic work, gimmick, look and charisma all factor in to determine the rankings.

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Finn Balor	5'11'', 190 lbs	Rock star-like presence, top-tier ring worker, serviceable talker.
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.	Apollo Crews	6'1'', 240 lbs	Fantastic athlete, great moves, needs to develop persona.
5.	Tyler Breeze	6'0'', 190 lbs	Ring work needs fine-tuning, maximizes gimmick, strong heel work.
6.	Colin Cassady	6'10'', 276 lbs	Good movement for big man, intense, strong connection with crowd.
7.	Hideo Itami	5'9'', 182 lbs	Showing more charisma, making progress as mic worker, electric in the ring.
8.	Jason Jordan	6'3'', 245 lbs	Impressive power, growing presence, needs to add to move set.
9.	Solomon Crowe	5'10'', 207 lbs	Excellent striker, good aggression, strong mic work, character in limbo at the moment.
10.	Baron Corbin	6'8'', 275 lbs	Improving in the ring, great look/size, inconsistent all around.
11.	Simon Gotch	6'1'', 221 lbs	Continues to work gimmick into move set, fun ring work, good presence.
12.	Bull Dempsey	6'2'', 300 lbs	Gimmick holding him back, strong brawler, skilled talker when serious.
13.	Tye Dillinger	6'3'', 223 lbs	Excelling with current gimmick, good showmanship, smooth ring work.
14.	Chad Gable	5'8'', 187 lbs	Bordering on being too goofy, smooth ring work, improving charisma, good energy.
15.	Aiden English	6'3'', 215 lbs	Good showmanship, solid charisma, average in the ring.
16.	Enzo Amore	5'11'', 200 lbs	Unimpressive ring work, funny, charismatic, better suited for manager role.
17.	Scott Dawson	5'10'', 224 lbs	Throwback in-ring style, good in-ring psychology, underwhelming mic work, lacks "it" factor.
18.	Blake	6'1'', 240 lbs	Solid athlete, inconsistent ring work, so-so presence.
19.	Dash Wilder	5'10'', 222 lbs	Lacks presence on the mic, aggressive ring work, good build,
20.	Mojo Rawley	6'4'', 290 lbs	One-dimensional gimmick, raw in the ring, big energy, good athlete.

Prospects just outside of top 20: Murphy, Sawyer Fulton, Steve Cutler

Enzo Overshadowed

Amore and Colin Cassady fought for a chance to make it to the semifinals of The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic against Finn Balor and Samoa Joe. When Joe and Big Cass collided, it was a tug-of-war between two titans. When Cassady and Balor locked up, it reminded one of the kind of action one sees in a comic book.

During Amore's turn on stage, it didn't feel like he was on the same level as his peers.

They were larger than life; he was ordinary. They wielded electric offense; he offered middling sparks.

Amore hit a weak DDT on Balor. He made it too obvious he was letting himself be put in position for the musclebuster. More than those moments, though, there was just an overall distance in the presence level of the three other wrestlers and himself.

The loudmouth gave a fiery, fun promo before the action. Once the bell rang, however, he wasn't nearly as effective.

That's been the case for a long time. His greatest moments are all verbal.

As a manager, he will flourish. If WWE insists on him being an in-ring performer, he will not make it past the bottom of the card.

Breeze Takes a Step Back

Breeze isn't going to become Sami Zayn or Balor in the ring if he stays at NXT for another five years. His ceiling just isn't that high. Still, one can see why WWE has held back from promoting him.

He has big moments in the ring and can tell a compelling story on the mat, but he isn't as consistent as the top prospects.

Credit: WWE.com

He and Tommaso Ciampa traded near-falls with a series of countered pin attempts. The rhythm of that exchange was off with Breeze jumping the gun, moving on to the next move too quickly. Prince Pretty also delivered a barrage of watered-down stomps in the corner.

Why a guy this talented and this experienced is hitting Play-Doh-soft kicks at this point is hard to understand.

There are times like that where he doesn't produce the kind of intensity a moment requires. He also switches back and forth between being more of a comedy wrestler and a viable threat. Against Ciampa, he rode his foe around like a horse at one point.

If that's something officials directed him to do, they need to stop giving him bad advice. If that's Breeze's own idea, he needs to refocus who his character is.

Yes, he is cocky and flashy, but he needs to balance that out with being dangerous. Gorgeous George, Adrian Street, Goldust and the long list of men who employed flamboyant gimmicks were at their best when their was bite to go along with their sauntering.

Apollo Crews' Connection in Progress

TakeOver: Respect will be huge for both Crews and Breeze. The two men are set to face each other at the next live special, both with plenty to prove.

For Crews, it's not about executing moves. He has shown that he does that expertly. On Wednesday's NXT against Johnny Gargano, he offered up his usual array of eye-popping in-ring weapons.

What Crews needs to work on is translating his ring acumen into great stories and into an ironclad connection with the crowd. He has shown flashes of that thus far.

In the bout with Gargano, he sold an abdominal-stretch variation well, howling in pain. He made one of Gargano's kick look tremendous by collapsing onto his face afterward.

Crews also roars mid-match to try and get the crowd going. The more he does of that kind of thing, the better. He's adept at wowing the crowd; drawing fans in emotionally is the tougher challenge.

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Notes
1.	Bayley	5'6''	Ever-increasing connection with fans, marketable to kids, excellent in-ring storyteller.
2.	Asuka	5'3''	Billed as dangerous force, skilled at submissions, great sense for theatrics, speaks limited English.
3.	Alexa Bliss	5'1''	Strong heel work, good presence, athletic.
4.	Carmella	5'5''	Great energy, raw/inconsistent in the ring.
5.	Eva Marie	5'8''	Improving (but still needs major work) in the ring, good look, stilted mic worker.
6.	Dana Brooke	5'3''	Heavy-handed acting, excellent athleticism, awkward in the ring too often.
7.	Billie Kay	5'8''	Good selling, solid in the ring, not standing out.
8.	Peyton Royce	5'7''	Lack of snap to offense, nondescript persona.

Royce and Kay

Royce and Billie Kay, the least-known of the women in NXT, teamed up to mixed results.

Each wrestler showed why WWE signed them. They are both good in-ring performers. They both have the kind of athleticism, footwork and body control that's required to make it in this business.

Kay looked better than Royce, though.

She executed a smooth headscissors before later hitting a delayed vertical suplex that showed off her power. She sold well. She nailed her foes with strong forearm shots.

Credit: WWE.com

Royce, on the other hand, had less pop to her offense. The lack of speed in her kicks really affects their impact on the match. She didn't do much to grab hold of the audience either.

In the final moments of the match, she appeared to trip off the top rope. Had she produced more highlights, that slip-up wouldn't be nearly as damaging.

Neither of these women are going to climb much higher in the division without some clearer characters or added elements to their personas. It's hard to tell how much personality either of them have because they have no avenue to express themselves.

Perhaps WWE just seems them as enhancement talent. In that case, it's going to take stellar ring work to get noticed and change that. We have yet to see that from them at NXT.