WWE NXT: Updated Prospect Rankings and Analysis, Predictions for Week of Jan. 28

Defeat didn't stop Baron Corbin from continuing his climb toward the top of WWE NXT.

Corbin gave way to Samoa Joe and Sami Zayn in terms of spotlight, as those two rivals claimed to have made him tap out. From a developmental standpoint, though, The Lone Wolf earned another victory. He is quietly progressing, getting closer to reaching his promised potential.

It's hard not to be overshadowed by the surging duo of Chad Gable and Jason Jordan, but Murphy looked strong during his loss, as well.

Murphy showed personality we haven't seen from him before. Carmella brought it on the mic. And Alex Riley shook up the NXT rankings after returning from injury.

The following is a look at how Riley and others shifted their positions on the list of the most promising prospects. Presence, charisma, look, mic work and mat skills determined the rankings.  

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Samoa Joe	6'2'', 279 lbs	Consistent high-quality matches, elite intensity, strong mic work.
2.	Finn Balor	5'11'', 190 lbs	Marketable, superb athlete, consistently delivers in big spots.
3.	Sami Zayn	6'1'', 205 lbs	Top-notch storyteller, stellar facial expressions, looks a step slower since return.
4.	Baron Corbin	6'8'', 275 lbs	Continually progressing, growing more confident, distance remains between him and top tier in terms of ring work.
5.	Apollo Crews	6'1'', 240 lbs	Fantastic athlete, needs work on in-ring nuances, solid promos.
6.	Jason Jordan	6'3'', 245 lbs	Makes everything look effortless, showing improved presence, crowd connection growing.
7.	Colin Cassady	6'10'', 276 lbs	Larger-than-life aura, good movement for big man, good connection with crowd.
8.	Hideo Itami	5'9'', 182 lbs	Electric in the ring, mic work is current weakness.
9.	Alex Riley	6'3'', 236 lbs	Strong mic work, good athlete, top-notch intensity, lacks standout bouts thus far.
10.	Chad Gable	5'8'', 187 lbs	Highly skilled mat wrestler, adding increased energy to offense, serviceable on the mic.
11.	Enzo Amore	5'11'', 200 lbs	Arguably best NXT mic worker, great presence, ring work still a question mark.
12.	Scott Dawson	5'10'', 224 lbs	Continuing run of standout performances, vicious, good brawler, making progress as a talker.
13.	Rich Swann	5'6'', 165 lbs	Out-of-this-world athlete, great energy, size could prove an issue.
14.	Tye Dillinger	6'3'', 223 lbs	Makes the audience notice him, good energy, strong mat work.
15.	Simon Gotch	6'1'', 221 lbs	Fun move set, strong character work, good charisma.
16.	Dash Wilder	5'10'', 222 lbs	Good tag team work, producing quality matches, below-average talker.
17	Aiden English	6'3'', 215 lbs	Average across the board, good actor.
18.	Murphy	5'11'', 227 lbs	Good build, athletic, powerful, lack of charisma is biggest weakness.
19.	Bull Dempsey	6'2'', 300 lbs	Comedy gimmick killing his momentum, strong talker, not getting a chance to show off brawling skills.
20.	Elias Samson	6'0'', 217 lbs	Good aggression, comfortable with gimmick, crowd not connecting yet.

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

Alex Riley is Back

After nearly a year off recovering from knee surgery, Riley stormed back into Full Sail University. A one-sided match with Bull Dempsey and an angry, backstage tirade served as his first two statements upon his return.

His biggest strength is his fiery, passionate promos. Riley crams a surplus of emotion into each performance. That was true again on Wednesday night.

The promo earned praise from, among others, the folks at Wrestling Inc:

In the ring, his match was fine. He was intense and focused. He's still clearly an excellent athlete.

But he will have a hard time standing out. He's not nearly as versatile a performer as guys like Zayn and Joe. He thrives when his foot is pressing the gas pedal all the way down. Can he tell other kinds of stories, though?

With an increasingly crowded NXT roster, opportunities will be hard to come by. 

Baron Corbin Getting Closer 

More and more, Corbin looks like he belongs on the same stage as NXT's best.

Battling Joe and Zayn in a Triple Threat, he had the least amount of star power of the three, but the gap wasn't what it once was. The Lone Wolf continues to look more at ease in the ring. He doesn't look like he's going through memorized steps anymore.

And Corbin has clearly worked on his striking.

His blows looked realistic. He landed them with more confidence. Overall, his brawling and intensity have picked up.

As Bryan Heaton of Daily DDT noted, "Corbin showed tremendous aggression" when he failed to get a pin on Zayn.

The more of that we see from him, the better. The furious monster is his ideal role. It's one he's growing into over time.

Murphy Stepping Up

The talk of the opening tag team match will surely be about how hot Jason Jordan and Chad Gable are right now. They are the jewels of the division, so that's not surprising.

Murphy, though, made NXT officials take notice during his and Blake's loss to them.

His biggest weakness has been a lack of presence. Blake has overshadowed him at times. Alexa Bliss does all the time.

On Wednesday night, however, he played more to the crowd. After knocking his foe over, he tapped his head to indicate how clever he is. And when he faked a knee injury, he did with full-throttle gusto.

Add some strong tag team psychology and the fact that this match was so good, and Murphy ended up looking far better by the end of it. Maybe something has just clicked with him, and he's ready to start moving up the rankings.

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Notes
1.	Bayley	5'6''	Great connection with crowd, tremendous storyteller, not an elite talker.
2.	Asuka	5'3''	Best all-around mat worker in the division, good showmanship, limited on promos.
3.	Alexa Bliss	5'1''	Increasingly convincing as heel, improving ring work, strong presence.
4.	Carmella	5'5''	Strong presence, charismatic, improved talker, average ring work.
5.	Emma	5'5''	Has adapted to new character quite well, good intensity, aggressive.
6.	Nia Jax	6'0''	Good intensity, great power, hasn't yet maximized gimmick.
7.	Peyton Royce	5'7''	Improving presence, better sense of character, good aggression.
8.	Dana Brooke	5'3''	Overacting holding her back, strong athlete, awkward in the ring.
9.	Eva Marie	5'8''	Outright hated by NXT fans, star look, miles to go in the ring.
10.	Liv Morgan	5'4''	Still raw, shows potential, good athlete.
11.	Billie Kay	5'8''	Good power, intensity needs work, OK presence.

Carmella's Blistering Promo 

Backstage, Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady fired shots at Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson. Carmella, meanwhile, focused her anger on Dana Brooke and Emma.

This was her best performance on the mic thus far. She was fierce and paced her speech well, and her emotions sounded 100 percent genuine. 

After being so goofy and flirty so often, Carmella showed she can flourish with a more vengeful tone. Getting her a sustained bitter feud would be a smart move. WWE can then see if The Princess of Staten Island is able to maintain this level of excellence.

Predictions

Liv Morgan will surprise people with her improvement. On Wednesday, she again just played someone's else's victim.

Credit: WWE.com

During these quick defeats, though, she keeps showing off her raw potential. PWTorch's Justin James was spot-on when he referred to her as "very promising."

Look for her to move past women like Dana Brooke and Peyton Royce before long. She keeps showing flashes of someone who belongs on a much higher rung.

Jordan and Gable, now calling themselves American Alpha, will be the next tag team WWE calls up. They have been the class of the division of late and have Wilder and Dawson beat in terms of personality.

Bet on WWE bringing Jordan and Gable to the main roster before their tag team peers.