WWE Raw: Burning Questions to Address After November 23 Show

The Survivor Series has come and gone, and in its wake it has left WWE in a state of transition.

Gone is Seth Rollins, victim of a torn MCL, ACL and medial meniscus that will keep him out of action until the New Year. Randy Orton and his occasionally dislocating shoulders are also seated on the sideline, as is John Cena, who has made the transition from WWE's resident superman to television's newest reality game show host.

Realizing they are in desperate need of a lead heel to combat surging babyface Roman Reigns, the company turned to Sheamus.

Yes, Sheamus.

The same Sheamus who uttered the words "getting jiggy with it" just an hour or so before winning his fourth world title. The same Sheamus who was seen dancing to The New Day's theme song earlier in the night at Survivor Series.

And, most importantly, the same Sheamus who was jobbed out to Kalisto, Jey Uso and Ryback in an elimination tag match just minutes later.

To say the choice of The Celtic Warrior was a bit curious would be an understatement the size of The Big Show.

How WWE Creative chose to book him one night after his Survivor Series triumph would be even more curious and lead to one of the most important burning questions to come out of Monday's Raw.

Among others.

Credit: WWE.com

1. Does WWE Want Us to Buy Sheamus as a Credible Champion?

Sheamus kicked off Raw with a boring, one-dimensional promo that literally any other heel on the roster could have delivered. Even Heath Slater.

From there, he ran like a scolded dog (thanks, J.R.), retreating up the ramp while Roman Reigns was left standing tall to close out the show. 

Nothing he did in his first night as champion suggested he would be booked any stronger or more effectively than he has been for months now, and that is a major problem for him, his title reign and the WWE product as a whole.

WWE Creative has done such a poor job of building heels over the last two or three years. None ever truly get over to the extent that they should because the focus is almost always on building the hero. In the process, the writers miss the point that heroes are only as good as the villains they have to combat, which explains why so many of the company's babyfaces come across as bland.

With so much focus put on Reigns Monday night, Sheamus feels very much like a transitional champion, someone holding the title because a decision was made by bookers to put the title on The Celtic Warrior for no other reason than to provide fans with a shocking twist of events to close out Survivor Series.

Thus, the likelihood anyone within WWE Creative actually cares whether Sheamus is perceived as a legitimate champion is low. The title will be around Reigns' waist sooner than later and all will be right with the World...Wrestling Entertainment Universe.

Credit: WWE.com

2. Is Becky Lynch on Her Way to a Heel Turn?

The first five months of the Divas Revolution saw Becky Lynch always by the side of her friend Charlotte. A loyal friend and confidant, she was always there to provide backup to the current Divas champion, helping her throughout her rivalry with Teams Bella and B.A.D.

On two separate occasions now, though, Charlotte was nowhere to be found when Lynch most needed her, failing to return the favor.

The first was when Lynch was being pummeled by Paige and trapped in the PTO atop the announce table. The latest, though, occurred Monday when she was left to try and fend off all of Team B.A.D. during her match with Sasha Banks, falling to The Boss thanks to outside interference that could have been prevented had Charlotte been at ringside.

At what point does Lynch become frustrated and angry by her friend's unwillingness to support her, to watch her back and be there for her in the same way she was for so long?

The fact that Lynch did not come to Charlotte's aid later in the night suggests that may be the direction WWE is heading. If so, the question becomes who the company replaces her with on the babyface side of things.

With Natalya being the only other real babyface in the division, could face turn No. 100 for The Bella Twins be on the horizon?

Whatever the case may be, Becky Lynch deserves the exposure that such a heel turn would bring her, especially after being in a wasteland of booking for the last six months.

Credit: WWE.com

3. What is the Point of The Dudley Boyz?

When Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley returned to WWE the night after SummerSlam this past August, it appeared as though the company was focusing on strengthening the roster with big-name talent. The legendary duo almost immediately hopped into tag title contention and even had a nice little feud with The New Day going. 

Then it stopped and they were left to wallow in the midcard, directionless.

At Survivor Series, they competed in a meaningless D-level elimination tag match, and on Raw, they dropped a decisive one-sided match to The Wyatt Family.

So, with a wealth of younger talent fighting for television time, what is the point of The Dudley Boyz?

Why keep them around, paying them to open shows against The Ascension when that spot could go to a younger team—such as Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady, who should already be on the main roster—that is capable of doing the same thing while not demanding nearly the payday that the table-loving brothers from different mothers do?

It is a puzzling decision at this point, especially since WWE Creative appears to have no idea what to do with the team once considered the most extreme and hated in all of professional wrestling.

Use them or let them go back to working independent shows across the country. Do not make them suffer as part of the indecisiveness that plagues WWE Creative.