Timeline of the Decimation of Seth Rollins' Credibility as WWE World Champion

Loss by loss, blunder by blunder, WWE has stripped Seth Rollins' credibility as world heavyweight champion down to the marrow.

The title has felt like a curse for The Architect. Since winning it, his character has softened, and his win-loss record has fallen apart.

Rollins is too often the victim, too often in retreat and too often the fool. There have certainly been successful cowardly heel champions in the past, but WWE has turned Rollins into something more than that—a toothless wimp and a paper champion.

The villain is supposed to get his comeuppance eventually, but Rollins receives his on a nightly basis. As Will Pruett noted on ProWrestling.net, "Rollins is consistently humiliated, which takes some of the fun out of it."

Former WWE writer Vince Russo wrote about the situation for Chair Shot Reality. He nailed it when he said, "The endless weeks of Rollins running from everybody, depending on two midgets to fight his battles, hiding under Stephanie's skirt and Hunter's huge...ego...were just getting to the point of nausea."

Worse yet is how often Rollins has been defeated since becoming champ. He isn't booked to be the company's top dog; he's the cellar-dweller who just happens to wear gold. 

Rollins has gone just 17-27-1 since winning the title and is currently on a seven-match losing streak.

At one point, all the defeats left Bleacher Report's Dan Pecoraro fired up. Of Rollins' many defeats, Pecoraro asked, "How is anybody supposed to have any credibility?":

This whole mess began early. The night after Rollins won the WWE title at WrestleMania saw Rollins fall.

March 30: Loses First Match as Champion

Roman Reigns, Randy Orton and Ryback teamed up against Kane, Big Show and the newly crowned Rollins.

During the course of the action, Rollins scurried out. The champ watched on from the entrance ramp as Reigns speared Kane. 

That's a baffling choice to have a crafty villain celebrate his biggest career accomplishment. It immediately cut into his momentum.  

April 13: Afraid of a Viper Surrounded

En route to their match at Extreme Rules, Rollins and Orton met in the ring on Raw. The champ lounged in a recliner as he revealed his plan to remove his enemy's best weapon from him. The Viper would not be allowed to use the RKO in their title match. 

When things turned violent, Rollins ran away from Orton despite having a three-on-one advantage with J&J Security at his side.

April 20: RKO Inside a Cage

In what would become a running theme, a frightened Rollins darted away from Kane. In his effort to escape one foe, though, he fell into the jaws of another.

Orton was there as the cage came down over the ring to floor the champ. Orton laid him out.

WWE could have easily scripted this so that Rollins had trapped Orton in the cage, and the champ could then be the one issuing the beating.

April 23: Lies Down for Kane

Dean Ambrose and Reigns joined forces in a tag team match on SmackDown. Rollins had Luke Harper on his side, who was an ally of The Authority at the time.

Not only did Rollins' team lose, but he was the one who took the pin. Reigns speared him for the three-count.

On that same night, Kane bullied Rollins into lying flat on his back so he could pin him. Rollins had done the same thing to him on Raw. The champion cowered and complied. 

Kane was just kidding with him, but fans still got the image of a frightened Rollins bowing down to another man's will.

April 27: Tag Team Loss, Kane Belittles Him

Orton and Reigns knocked off Rollins and Kane. The champ collided with Kane at one point, and that set off his supposed ally.

The big man attacked Rollins, throwing him into the ring so that his rivals could pounce on him. A Superman Punch and an RKO later, Orton pinned Rollins. 

On the very same edition of Raw, Kane again made Rollins quiver where he stood. The two exchanged insults until Kane called him the WWE version of Justin Bieber.

The crowd joined in. WWE had successfully made the audience connect its world champion to a diminutive pop star who makes Michael Cole look like Stan Hansen. 

May 4: Ambrose Earns His Way into Payback

Rollins already had Reigns and Orton set to challenge him at the pay-per-view. Ambrose earned his spot in what would become a Fatal 4-Way. He did so by defeating Rollins. 

To make Rollins look worse, J&J Security tried to interfere, and even with that bit of cheating, the champ lost to his bitter enemy. 

May 25 and May 28: Consecutive Tag Team Losses

On both Raw and SmackDown that week, Rollins fell. Both times out, he teamed with Kane. Both times out, Ambrose and Reigns overpowered the heels.

Ambrose pinned Rollins on Raw. That led Micheal Cole to say, "How embarrassing is that for the WWE world heavyweight champion Seth Rollins?"

It's a feeling he would have to get used to. Losses like that would become the norm.

On that week's SmackDown, Rollins at least avoid getting pinned. He and Kane lost by disqualification after J&J Security jumped into the match. Reigns had Rollins beaten before the champ's goons intervened.

May 31 (Elimination Chamber): Escape by Technicality 

Rollins retained the WWE title at Elimination Chamber—but in a backdoor, by-the-skin-of-his-teeth manner. The champion pushed the referee into Ambrose. Fans would later learn that the official would disqualify him for that.

The ref was out cold, though, at first, and a second one came rushing in. The new official counted to three, awarding Ambrose a win after he hit Dirty Deeds.

Moments later, the original referee reversed the decision. Ambrose stole the title in protest.

June 6: Defeated by His Own Goons

Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury had long been Rollins' right-hand men. They were inept and small and mostly harmless, as WWE would have us believe to that point.

When they were forced to face Rollins, though, they ended up scoring an upset.

Despite this being a Handicap match and Ambrose's distraction playing a part in it, this remains the symbol for how weak Rollins has looked. It's difficult to imagine Triple H, Orton or any heel champion losing to a pair of semiretired goofs like them.

June 15: Retreat from The Beast

Triple H wanted to pressure Rollins to make him better. Never mind that without that pressure, he had barely won many of his matches and lost more than his fair share along the way.

Still, The Game sent out Brock Lesnar as Rollins' next challenger.

The champ's response saw him shy away, say nothing and put his head down like The Beast Incarnate was about to steal his lunch money. Rollins slipped out of the ring to escape.

July 9: Retreat from Ryback

Rollins continued the pattern of retreat. Against Ryback on SmackDown, he chose to accept a count-out loss rather than face The Big Guy 

Jerry Lawler commented that the champ was like a dog who tucked his tail between his legs.

On its own, this wasn't all that bad. As part of a larger pattern of cowardice, it worsened Rollins' aura. When was he ever going to make someone else retreat?

Ryback and Reigns teamed up to cut off Rollins' escape plan. Ryback hit the champ with Shell Shock to leave him writhing on the mat.

July 19 (Battleground): Not Even in the Frame

Lesnar throttled Rollins for the majority of their title bout. That wasn't the worst part of Rollins' night in terms of credibility, though.

The bout closed with Undertaker emerging from the darkness. The two titans then clashed. Rollins wasn't in the ring or part of the action at all.

He was of so little importance that the announcers seemed not to notice that he was absent from the battle.

July 20: Cena Calls Out the Champ

With the United States Championship in his grip, Cena called Rollins a joke. Pointing at the WWE title, he said, "Your actions make people lose faith in that."

WWE had been making every effort to make the U.S. title look more prestigious. It's baffling that the company would then try to do the opposite for the crown that Rollins carried.

July 27: Loss to an Injured John Cena

In one of many United States Championship matches that Rollins lost while being world champ, he fell victim to Cena on Raw. 

Never mind that Rollins' knee had broken Cena's nose. The crushed cartilage pressed against Cena's face like smashed clay.

Rollins lost anyway. He tapped out to Cena, unable to withstand the STF.

Aug. 23 (SummerSlam): Dependent on Stewart

Rollins defeated Cena at the marquee PPV to take home both the U.S. and WWE titles. That victory wasn't about him, however.

All the headlines led with the man who allowed Rollins to steal that victory. Comedian Jon Stewart nailed Cena with a chair. Rollins was simply the scavenger who pounced on the already felled beast.

JP Yim/Getty Images

The heat went to a TV show host, not the champion.

Aug. 24: Sting Instead of a Statue

Rollins awaited a statue made in his honor. Sting had other plans. The Icon popped out from under the curtains and ambushed Rollins.

On its own, this isn't a bad choice. It was yet another part of a cycle of Rollins' ineptitude, though. He couldn't fend off Sting and didn't seem to want to.

He scurried around the ring, the fly trying to avoid the flyswatter.

Sept. 7: Champion versus Champion

Distracted by Sting, Rollins lost again. The champ was so focused on Sting possessing his statue that he left himself vulnerable.

Ryback swooped in. An inside cradle earned him a three-count. 

Rollins also lost to Cena and The Prime Time Players the same night in six-man action.

Sept. 14: Taps Out to Sting

Cena and Sting teamed up against Big Show and Rollins. Rather than have Big Show take the loss or have this go to a no-contest of some sort to build up hype for Night of Champions, Rollins played the bull's eye while Sting played the dart.

The 56-year-old made Rollins tap out to the Scorpion Deathlock. And the champion did so right away, the move barely on him before he called it quits.

Sept. 20 and 21: Consecutive Losses to Cena

Rollins lost the U.S. title to Cena at Night of Champions. He failed to gain it back at Raw.

Booking Cena to be a double champion ended up costing him a number of wins. It led to Cena dominating him. 

For good measure, Kane attacked Rollins at the pay-per-view. So, Rollins spent his one victory out of his three matches out cold at the feet of The Director of Operations.

Sept. 21: A Short Trip to Hell

Kane reprised his role as the monster; Rollins again played the victim. The champion spent the night scared of the masked man.

Eventually, Kane dragged him down into the center of the ring.

Why Rollins wasn't allowed to inflict his own hell on more enemies is anyone's guess. This was yet another example of Rollins ending up as prey.

Sept. 24: The Lunatic Fringe Triumphant Again

Kane's music hit during Rollins' battle with Ambrose. That and the red lights that came on were enough to scare him into a stupor.

Ambrose took advantage. He pinned the champ despite not being a part of this feud, despite WWE not pushing The Lunatic Fringe to title contention. 

Sept. 28: An Evaluation Gone Wrong

It looked like Rollins would be the fearsome one for once. After an employee evaluation deemed Kane sane, Rollins attacked him.

He smashed his surgically repaired ankle and sent him out on a stretcher. That was not the end, however. Kane emerged from the ambulance to lay down a beating of his own.

Rollins scampered away to avoid the Tombstone Piledriver.

Oct. 3 (Live from Madison Square Garden): Cena in a Cage

WWE could have had Rollins face anybody at the live event at Madison Square Garden. He could have hobbled Cesaro or driven Dolph Ziggler's head into the mat.

Instead, WWE went with Cena as his opponent again. Unwilling to take the U.S. title from him, it chose to have Cena again beat Rollins. That marked the champion's third consecutive loss to Cena, five if you count tag matches.

Oct. 12: Lumberjack Match Against Kane

Kane ended the night looking monstrous and formidable. Rollins was the patsy again.

Kane booked a Lumberjack match for the night with The Authority not around. Despite The New Day and other heels getting involved and beating on him, Kane flung his foes around and won outright.

Just weeks before Rollins meets Kane at Hell in a Cell, he lost to him courtesy of a Tombstone Piledriver.

There is nothing WWE can do to reverse all this negative momentum it has created. Fans' memories of Rollins as champ are of him emulating a roach running from the light and a midcarder disguised as champion.

It's best to cut bait at this point. Have Rollins repair his image without the gold before starting anew.

Rather than create a new star by using the WWE title to elevate Rollins, the company has chosen to riddle the champion's credibility with holes. In the process, it has created its own cautionary tale about how not to book a world champion.

Match statistics courtesy of CageMatch.net.