Heel Roman Reigns, WrestleMania on TV and More from the Granddaddy Mailbag

I want to start and end this introduction by reiterating that reports of Roman Reigns' demise are greatly exaggerated. And fabricated.

Good Roman Gone Bad?

Stop it. Just stop it. People need to consider who is booing Reigns. It's usually loud males who are committed to WWE's product no matter who is on top. Many of them are single, so they live in a world that revolves around them, and don't consider the appeal Reigns has to women and children, whose financial contributions to WWE are much less guaranteed.

During my interview with WWE artist Rob Schamberger on the PodNasty Wrestling Podcast, Schamberger cited Reigns as a consistent bestseller when it came to T-shirt sales. He acknowledged the males who constantly boo Reigns but noted his women and children clientele are fond of his Reigns artwork.

Schamberger also noted Reigns' popularity on Canvas 2 Canvas, as its Reigns video amassed more views than any other in history. More than Kevin Owens, more than AJ Styles and more than Seth Rollins.

The Internet Wrestling Community tends to take its loud opinion and extrapolate it. One of the most ridiculous things I've heard all week is how 84,000 people are going to boo Reigns out of the building, as WrestleMania is some niche independent wrestling show that won't attract a broad, diverse audience.

Heel or not, Reigns will be fine. Besides, fans have already bought WrestleMania tickets in record numbers, per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Raj Giri of WrestlingInc.com). WWE already has the fans' money with no incentive to cave.

Until hardcore fans learn how to boycott, they just sound like elderly patients at a hospital who whine before inevitably taking their medicine.

Get a wife and kids, and be happy.

WrestleMania on TV?

I've always been interested to see what type of ratings WWE would draw on television, especially with all-day coverage from SportsCenter. But I was surprised when WWE moved WrestleMania from pay-per-view to the WWE Network, and I would be shocked if it ever put WrestleMania on television.

According to a recent report by Todd Spangler of Variety, TV ratings have been shrinking across the board with the onset of Netflix, Hulu and other live streaming services. Young people are changing the way they watch TV by going over the top, which makes WWE wise to invest so much in its network.

I don't see WrestleMania ever being on television. Instead, I see the opposite. During the next round of TV rights negotiations with the USA Network, I see WWE threatening to move Raw and SmackDown to the WWE Network.

If streaming services continue to grow at this pace and TV ratings continue to decline, WWE will have the leverage in that situation. USA needs WWE to continue its streak of being the No. 1 cable channel. But with the WWE Network now over 1.2 million subscribers and counting, WWE can afford to be less reliant on its longtime television partner.

A New Day?

"

@ThisIsNasty Could you see anybody new aligning with the Authority on post-mania Raw (assuming Shane loses)? Owens? Ziggler? Wyatt? Reigns?

— Kevin (@kcummens20) March 24, 2016"

The post-WrestleMania Raw is shaping up to be an exciting one. It always feels like the start of a new season, which is why I feel there is so much value in Shane McMahon defeating The Undertaker and starting fresh the next night.

Bray Wyatt and Reigns are both candidates to either get involved in the WrestleMania match between Shane and The Undertaker and/or benefit from Shane's new era.

With so many stipulations in play during that match, I expect to see a busy finish that involves multiple wrestlers, maybe even a legend or two.

I have a feeling there will be a double-turn of sorts that shuffles the deck of The Authority. I'd be surprised if Shane, The Undertaker, Reigns and The Authority walked out of WrestleMania with the same alliances they had heading into the event.

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.