Is Daniel Bryan Headed for a Heel Turn Against the Big Show?

Things are getting very interesting with Daniel Bryan on SmackDown. 

The blue brand’s Money in the Bank winner has been relatively dormant over the last few months, but all of a sudden, he finds himself right smack in the middle of the World Heavyweight Championship feud between Mark Henry and The Big Show. 

You shouldn’t just brush off his involvement in this rivalry as a mere coincidence, either. No, it’s gotta be leading toward something. 

The only question is: What is it? 

Realistically, I think there could be three possible reasons why Bryan has suddenly become a big-time player in the World Heavyweight title picture: 

1. Bryan will cash in his MITB briefcase on Mark Henry, likely at Survivor Series.
2. Bryan will cash in his briefcase on The Big Show and turn heel in the process (likely at Survivor Series as well). 
3. Henry will hold onto the title all the way until WrestleMania 28, Bryan will wait until then to cash in just like he promised and everything we’ve seen between those two is just the WWEs way of foreshadowing what’s to come.

I could obviously be wrong here, but these seem like the three most likely possibilities to me, although I think one is more much likelier than the other two. 

So, let’s start with the problem I see with Option No. 1. 

Having Bryan cash in on a monster heel like Henry would be a great booking decision, but having him do so before WrestleMania 28 would not. Bryan is seen as this honorable baby face, and if he goes back on his word and cashes in before the granddaddy of them all, the main thing that would accomplish is proving that Bryan’s a liar—and that’s just too heelish. 

Now, moving on to the problem with Option No. 2. 

Quite simply, I don’t think Bryan would work well as a heel at the moment. He’s already got a ton of fan support as one of SmackDown’s most beloved baby faces, his lack of size makes him more prone to being cheered than booed and SmackDown is already heel heavy. 

Turning Bryan would create a huge logjam on SmackDown’s heel side, with Bryan, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Mark Henry and Christian all as upper mid-card/main event level heels. It just wouldn’t make sense to move Bryan to the dark side when the only-full time face main-eventers on SmackDown are Sheamus and Randy Orton. 

Finally, let’s take a look at the problem with Option No. 3. 

The only concern I see with this option is that having Henry hold onto the World Heavyweight Championship all the way until WrestleMania 28 would mean that we’ve got another five months or so of lackluster main events for the SmackDown brand.

No matter how enjoyable Henry’s character has been as of late, I just don’t think that anyone really wants to see him competing in high-profile matches during the WWE's busiest time of the year. 

Thus, the WWE finds itself in a “pick your poison” type of situation at the moment, with each and every scenario involving Bryan carrying some sort of risk or uncertainty along with it. 

The company does have to make a decision, however, and that decision will depend largely on the answer to this question: Out of turning Bryan heel, having him go back on his word or having Henry hold onto the title for another five months, what’s the deadliest poison? 

My answer: Having Bryan cashing in early and expecting him to stay baby face will be difficult, whether he’s cashing in on The Big Show or Mark Henry. Lying is something that cowardly heels do, not respectable baby faces. 

So, if WWE officials want Bryan to cash in, then they better want him to turn heel as well because that will have to happen. I just don’t see that being the case, though. 

The WWE has to realize that, like guys such as Evan Bourne and Rey Mysterio, Bryan is a better fit as a face than he ever will be as a heel, and having him turn on The Big Show could wind up being detrimental for his character in the long run. 

I think they do understand that, and as a result, Bryan’s current involvement in Henry’s business won’t lead to anything now…but it could lead to Bryan’s WrestleMania moment in Miami, Florida next year.