WWE Rumors: Buzz on Road to WWE Royal Rumble 2016 for Week of Jan. 22

With one of WWE's biggest pay-per-views in the shape of Royal Rumble just days away, the rumors are swirling online over what could and couldn't happen at the show.

The Rumble match, set for Sunday at 8 p.m., is all about surprise entrants, and there is talk linking some big names with showing up at the event, as this week's rumor roundup will show.

There's also talk about what could happen at WrestleMania 32 with one of WWE's biggest stars.

Bryan Cleared To Wrestle...But Not By WWE

There's huge news emerging ahead of Sunday's Royal Rumble with word that Daniel Bryan has been cleared to wrestle. However, it's not WWE that has cleared him.

Dave Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Marc Middleton of Lords of Pain) that concussion specialists at UCLA have cleared Bryan to wrestle again.

According to Meltzer, Bryan underwent a number of tests and was "deemed OK."

This is obviously big news, but as long as WWE hasn't cleared him, there won't be a chance he'll step back into the ring. Bryan is headed to Pittsburgh this weekend, which is where the Royal Rumble is being held, but he's only there for a convention appearance.

However, could Bryan being cleared by specialists convince WWE he's ready for a ring return? We can only hope.

Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman in the Cards?

Yep, you read that headline correctly. 

Lords of Pain's Middleton writes that there has been talk behind the scenes at WWE to put Brock Lesnar, the indomitable force in the company, up against a guy who has had barely a match to speak of.

If this is true, then there are so many things wrong with the idea.

First of all, why would Braun Strowman be considered ready to fight such a major name? He's a suitable henchman for Bray Wyatt, but he's done nothing to merit such a high-profile and eye-catching feud.

If the company can't find anything else for Lesnar to do other than fight a guy who doesn't compete much, then there's something seriously wrong with the plans for WrestleMania 32.

Let's hope that this one is genuinely nothing more than a rumor.

Heat on Tyler Breeze

Things haven't been going well for Tyler Breeze lately, and it seems he's picked up even more heat backstage of late.

PWInsider Elite (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc) notes that Breeze "asked for permission" to head off early from a recent TV taping and that Breeze received a lot of backlash because of it.

The word is, according to PWInsider, that Breeze was considered by some backstage to be "disrespecting the business" given how he just stepped up from NXT.

It's fairly obvious that Breeze's push is going backward, and he's in real danger of becoming stale and not that relevant at the most crucial part of the year.

Hopefully he can get back on the horse and find something interesting to do as WrestleMania 32 approaches.