WWE Monday Night Raw: 5 Things We Need To See Before Survivor Series 2011

With WWE Survivor Series 2011 upon us, WWE is preparing for an epic three-hour Raw SuperShow to bring hype for the pay-per-view to a boiling point.  To truly put this episode of Raw over the top, The Rock is making his return prior to his tag team where he'll join forces with John Cena to take on The Miz and R-Truth.

Raw is already guaranteed to boost their ratings thanks to The Rock's involvement, but if WWE is wise about this opportunity, they need to make sure there are many more positives about the episode other than The Rock.

With many casual viewers tuning in to see The Rock on WWE television, it's imperative that they have an overall compelling show to try and sell the casual fans on tuning in regularly, rather than only seeing what Rocky is up to and tune back out when he's long gone.

Bleacher Report is here to list five particular things that WWE needs to do Monday night to not only sell Survivor Series to the maximum, but even convert casual fans or old fans into regular viewers.

Use Zack Ryder's Petition as Social Media Leverage and Give Him a Title Shot

If you're reading this, it's very likely that you're well aware that Zack Ryder has been using his Twitter account to push a petition with the aim of getting another shot at Dolph Ziggler's United States Championship.

Ryder has consistently been receiving positive fan reactions, and at times receiving one of the biggest pops of the night.  He's worked hard at earning a WWE Championship, or at least another title shot.

This is also an opportunity to talk about Twitter and WWE's social media outlets without the context being Michael Cole randomly rambling about Twitter in the middle of a match. 

Ryder's a talented, colorful character who's had multiple matches with Ziggler that were quite entertaining, and I believe a fleshed out match between them at Survivor Series would be worthy air time during the PPV.  WWE needs to give him his title shot at Survivor Series, and have him earn it on Raw.

Jim Ross Avoiding Humiliation in Front of His Fans

Fans of The Rock who will be tuning to Raw Monday night will find themselves watching the "Michael Cole Challenge" at some point during the show.  Those fans are likely fans of Jim Ross, who was the voice of the WWE during The Rock's climb to the top of the company.  

Chances are, those fans won't be big fans of Michael Cole.

The Michael Cole Challenge is a rather vague challenge issued to Jim Ross by Michael Cole, with the stipulation that if Ross wins, he can have Cole's job.  It's too good to be true, and we know it.

In a perfect world, this waste of time wouldn't even happen, but it's in WWE's hands to make the best of the situation.  Humiliating Jim Ross yet again would confirm that it's still business as usual for WWE, and alienate casual fans and old fans alike.  

WWE can knock this out of the park by having Jim Ross turn the tables on Cole and humiliate him for a change.  Let Ross leave Raw proud, telling Cole he can take his job and shove it. 

Team Orton vs. Team Barrett Built Up Thoroughly

If there was ever a time I wanted the SmackDown writers in full control of an angle, this might be it.  Their "simple, yet satisfying" booking has transformed SmackDown from "optional" viewing material into "must-see." 

Keeping the traditional Survivor Series match simple and concise is exactly what WWE needs to convince fans that this is more than a throwaway match and make this show an actual Survivor Series event.

A formal introduction of both teams would be nice, and open up doors for some promo work. Making this happen early and turning it into a brawl would allow a WWE official to come out and set up multiple matches between the participants to fill up Raw's three-hour time slot.  

Mix up the matches with some singles and a tag match, turn the conflict up to the max, and watch sparks fly.  The Survivor Series match will sell itself from there.  

CM Punk Dueling with a Competent Alberto Del Rio

There was no shortage of criticism for CM Punk's burial of WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio last week on Raw.  Regardless of how true Punk's criticisms of Del Rio were, Del Rio boring the fans being one of them, it's not wise for Punk to squash everyone he battles on the mic.

On Raw, Del Rio needs to come across a competent champion who is dangerous inside and outside of the ring.  CM Punk is at his best when he's against the odds, and the odds were tilted way too far in his favor last week.

This would not only be a good thing for WWE, but a good thing for both Punk and Del Rio.  If both men bring their A game, their feud stands to gain significant amounts of interest going into their WWE Championship match at Survivor Series.  Not to mention they may make some new fans with all the new eyes watching.  

Awesome Truth Becoming Legitimate Threats to Cena and the Rock's Uneasy Alliance

The greatest gripe against the high-profile tag team bout of John Cena and The Rock facing The Miz and R-Truth, is that "Awesome Truth" isn't quite a threat worthy of a super team like Cena and The Rock.  WWE needs to do their very best to use their three-hour broadcast to change that.

A promo faceoff between the teams would likely end with The Rock simply squashing them, so expect Awesome Truth to take a more underhanded route when it comes to being a thorn in their side of their competition.

At the same time, the focus needs to be on The Rock and John Cena's relationship being hazardous at best.  These two honestly belong nowhere near each other unless they're fighting, verbally or physically.  It needs to be made clear to fans that there's no love loss at all between the two.  I'd go as far as to leave the fans thinking that the two may not make it through their entire Survivor Series match without turning on one another.  

Will WWE deliver on these five things we need to see on Monday night?  One can only hope. Sound off in the comment section with what you would like to see take place Monday night!