Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns Stuck in Wrong Feuds and More WWE SmackDown Fallout

WWE has often been known to deliver big when it matters least, and that seems to be the case for Survivor Series 2019. This event has been built with a host of great matches that have nothing on the line.

Friday's edition of SmackDown only amplified this problem through a few key storylines.

Roman Reigns and King Corbin may be among the top stars in WWE, but they have no chemistry. Their feud continued to drag down the company even while Mustafa Ali benefited from the spotlight.

Miz TV challenged Daniel Bryan to make a decision about his future, only to be interrupted by Bray Wyatt. While The Planet's Champion's challenge to The Fiend has potential to be huge, making it a one-and-done rivalry sees it lose much of the excitement.

NXT may also continue to make splashes, but the victories are few and far between. Nikki Cross benefited from the opportunity to fight Team NXT on Friday, taking down Dakota Kai to earn her spot at Survivor Series.

This show tried its best to keep Survivor Series moving forward, but it mostly seemed to negatively affect the event with poorly devised storylines.

Bray Wyatt vs. Daniel Bryan Is a Good Feud at the Wrong Time

The Miz attempted to get answers from Daniel Bryan on Miz TV, but he was consistently quiet. Bray Wyatt appeared in the Firefly Fun House to taunt The Planet's Champion. In response, Bryan challenged The Fiend  to a match, and the WWE universal champion accepted.

A match between Wyatt and Bryan should feel so much bigger than it does. These two have proved their chemistry together, and they are individually great. However, there's no heat.

Some of this comes down to a lack of build, while the timing is also off. Bryan is on the edge of deciding whether he is a heel or face, and his story with Sami Zayn and Shinsuke Nakamura should be front and center.

The Fiend has become a fan favorite, and he needed a distinct babyface or heel to fight. Putting him in a throwaway match with Bryan does not help either man.

The quality match on the horizon will be worth the time invested as long as WWE avoids the red lighting, but the company needed to take its time with this pairing. Throwing it together makes it feels like a waste.

King Corbin and Roman Reigns Are the Worst Possible Rivals for Each Other

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King Corbin attempted to reshape Team SmackDown at Survivor Series by backing up Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode in a match against Mustafa Ali and Shorty G. Roman Reigns took out The Lone Wolf to set up a Chaos Theory into a 450 splash for the babyface win that sealed their Survivor Series spots.

Corbin's feud with Reigns is the worst thing going on the blue brand. The scripts are not great, but the problem here is the lack of chemistry between two of SmackDown's top stars. Corbin has been improving lately, but he does not work well with The Big Dog.

The match between them earlier in November was far from worthy of its main event spotlight. On Friday, he again opened the show with a long-winded promo that went nowhere. The Lone Wolf needs to be feuding with guys like G and Ali, who complement his style better.

Too much focus has been given to a bad feud, and it is becoming obvious. Regular, valuable stars are being forgotten because these two are battling each other.

The Return of Mustafa Ali's 1st Name Should Signal a Full Rise to Prominence

Mustafa Ali continues to stand in a featured light, benefiting from an alliance with Roman Reigns. However, he was always worthy of this spot. He recently was the focus of a CBS Evening News spot that made clear how important he is to the company and the business.

As a result of that, coupled with his work recently in WWE, Ali got his first name back, which helps him to feel more like a complete star. He can do so much for WWE, but he will need the right opportunities.

A win over Ziggler and Roode may not feel that vital, especially given he was working with Shorty G, who may never be allowed to rise given his own new name. It mattered, though, because it kept him as a focus and set up a bigger spotlight soon.

If everything goes right, Ali could be positioned to win gold sooner rather than later. It might be a dream more than a reality, but he has the ability to be the light that can overwhelm the darkness that is Bray Wyatt.

NXT Threat Losing Steam with Frequent Losses

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Bayley and Shayna Baszler got into a brawl quickly to ruin the SmackDown women's champion's match with Nikki Cross on Friday.

Rhea Ripley helped in the brawl with Tegan Nox, Dakota Kai and Mia Yim to set up an impromptu tag team match against Cross, Sasha Banks, Carmella and Dana Brooke. NXT lost thanks to Cross catching Kai with the Purge.

The first night of NXT's invasion put the brand on the right path. The stars were treated as better than the main-roster stars. Trading wins after that moment would have made sense. Instead, NXT has outright lost repeatedly.

Monday Night Raw was more egregious in the handling of NXT UK, but stars like Ripley and Nox should be protected, especially going into NXT TakeOver: WarGames. Perhaps a singles match between Cross and Kai would have been more appropriate.

Suddenly, it is once more becoming tough to see NXT as a worthy threat. Given the women's division's depth in NXT, this team should not have come on to SmackDown and lost.

The point may have been to put over The Twisted Sister, but plenty of opportunities would have set the stage for her better than this.