WWE Draft 2011: A Sudden Impact, but We Can Dream, Can't We?
Are you ready, Bleacher Creatures?
The 2011 WWE Draft is approaching swiftly and like the old man says himself, “It’s time to shake things up again!”
As most fans rejoice at the thought of Randy Orton, The Miz or Alberto Del Rio switching brands, others realize that this was a panic move by the WWE. The sudden retirement of Edge left a huge void in the SmackDown kingdom.
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Believe it or not, the Rated R Superstar was still a huge draw on SmackDown and without him, SmackDown just isn’t the same.
The fastest rising Superstar in the WWE was without a challenger for the ladder match for Extreme Rules.
Captain Charisma took Edge’s place in the match and a plethora of fans are pushing for him to win the world title at Extreme Rules.
One thing the IWC must realize is that it doesn’t matter what we think.
The Rise of Captain Charisma
We criticize, complain and call for our Superstars to receive a push, but at the end of the day, there has to be a main eventer and there has to be mid carders. Christian may very well be the guy who deserves to hold the world championship.
Mic skills, in-ring ability and stage presence are all traits of Captain Charisma, but in the end, it’s up to WWE Creative to decide.
Being that this is Christian’s first world title match since his return to the WWE, there’s obviously something we see in Captain Charisma that the WWE doesn’t.
Despite this, Christian has a decent enough chance to win the world title, but it will be a tainted victory.
The win would be out of pity for Edge’s retirement.
The draft epitomizes the small amount of faith the WWE has in Christian. With the draft set and stone and our eagerness for the results, there are a number of predictions on who should be drafted and who should stay at home.
SmackDown is obviously the B-show and for talents like Daniel Bryan, Evan Bourne and Zack Ryder, SmackDown is the place to be.
Top-tier mid-carders like John Morrison or Sheamus can also be factored into this odd equation. Sheamus and Morrison are two guys in need of that extra shove to cement their status as main-event talent.
While we’re on the subject of John Morrison, let’s further explore this phenomenon.
The Curious Case of John Morrison
When the stories of Morrison giving Trish Stratus the proverbial cold shoulder, many fans assumed (and suggested) that Morrison be placed in the doghouse for his actions.
After the stories of why Morrison really ignored Trish came to light, a number of fans changed their opinions of Morrison. It seems as if the WWE has done the same.
On last week’s episode of RAW, Morrison lost a gauntlet match to R-Truth.
Truth became No. 1 contender along with John Cena in a move any intelligent fan thought was set for Morrison. Apparently the loss was punishment for Morrison, as he defeated R-Truth for his spot this past RAW.
This was a win-win situation for Creative as Morrison is now in the triple-threat match and R-Truth has become a heel. Well before this RAW fiasco, Morrison was one of SmackDown’s brightest stars.
He defeated then-world champion, CM Punk, on two occasions. Morrison received a world title match with Jeff Hardy and despite a valiant effort, lost to Hardy after a Swanton.
Morrison defeated Rey Mysterio for the IC title a few weeks later and seemed like a huge hit on SmackDown.
Months later, he was without the IC Title and moved to RAW. He’s been lost in the mix ever since. Can a move to the blue brand be the best thing for Morrison at this point?
From the comparison of the following SmackDown promos to those of RAW, and crowd reaction, I would believe so.
“I wasn’t hand-picked by the brass in the back and pedigreed into their corporate champion.
Anything can be done with a little passion."
The WWE Draft
As I stated above, the WWE draft is obviously the biggest result of Edge’s retirement. Christian isn’t highly regarded by Vince McMahon, therefore someone else needs to replace Edge as the face of SmackDown.
On RAW, there’s a guy who is the second-biggest face behind John Cena. With Cena still in the title picture, this guy will never be the top dog on RAW.
But now this man can take over SmackDown and make an instantaneous impact upon his arrival. The man I’m referring to is the Viper, Randy Orton.
Since his face turn last year, Orton has become a staple in the WWE title picture, but never reached the center of attention due to John Cena. Will the Viper strike SmackDown with his Venom?
Lately, there has been talk of drafting the WWE and world champions to the opposing brand. Multiple stories have reported that Alberto Del Rio will be moved to RAW as world champion while WWE champion, The Miz, will be moved to SmackDown.
The Miz has feuded with all of the top-level talent on RAW and it may be time for a change in scenery.
For months, the WWE has been trying to improve their Hispanic audience on RAW. With SmackDown occupied by Rey Mysterio, Alberto has the opportunity to switch brands.
Del Rio has a feud with John Cena in the works and the exposure of RAW may give the Mexican aristocrat a top heel in the WWE.
While Miz, Orton and Del Rio are the talk of the draft buzz, it seems as if SmackDown and RAW will adopt a number of formidable additions.
Drew McIntyre, Cody Rhodes, Daniel Bryan, Evan Bourne, R-Truth are all likely for a change in scenery.
With the number of changes the draft will ensure to the WWE landscape, it would be intelligent for Creative to keep Superstars off opposing brands.
An example of this would be Alberto Del Rio appearing on RAW or Miz appearing on multiple SmackDown episodes. Actions of this manner take the meaning of the draft away from the WWE.
Perhaps it should be an unwritten law not to appear on another brand like it was in 2004.
Patience is a virtue, Bleachers. But we can dream, can’t we?
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