WWE TLC 2011: Why The Miz Isn't Credible Enough to Get Title Shots Again Yet

Despite currently being in dire need of a tweaked if not a revamped image, The Miz has come a long way since making his WWE debut in 2004. The former MTV reality star paved his way by entering the fourth season of Tough Enough, paying his dues as a quasi host of sorts on SmackDown.

In between presiding over the divas with a microphone in hand, The Miz had already established a catchphrase of his own—"Hoo-Rah"—that he managed to make popular in a short period of time.

Before he knew it, the clean-cut wrestler was paired with another fledgling Tough Enough alumnus, John Morrison. The two popularized a web show en route to becoming Miz and Morrison, the brashest tag team since the late 1990's surge of "Attitude."

After five years of travails, The Miz won the Money in the Bank briefcase in July 2010 before ultimately cashing it in late November of that year against Randy Orton on Raw, becoming the WWE champion.

The Miz lost his WWE title at Extreme Rules 2011 and since then his luster just hasn't been the same. His credibility has been undermined to the point where the fans are not quite sure what to make of him.

What happened?

Primarily, the booking of his title reign was mired in incompetency. Right off the bat, The Miz won the title in weasel-like fashion. Then at TLC 2010, he retained against "The Viper" thanks to help from his right-hand man at the time, Alex Riley. At the 2011 Royal Rumble, The Miz once again left with his gold as a result of CM Punk's interference.

Shortly thereafter, at Elimination Chamber 2011, the "Awesome" one got a rare victory over a 61-year-old Jerry Lawler. Subsequently, at WrestleMania 27, it was The Rock's meddling that precluded a title change. Finally, at Extreme Rules 2011, The Miz was relieved of his unremarkable reign, losing to John Cena.

Do you note a pattern? As far as the fans were concerned, The Miz only had it in him to beat a senior citizen on his own accord; otherwise, he couldn't get the job done without blatant interference.

Of course, once The Miz no longer had the strap around his waist, he again succumbed to John Cena at Over the Limit 2011 before losing to his minion, Alex Riley, at Capital Punishment 2011.

By Money in the Bank 2011, the former champion was firmly entrenched in mid-card mediocrity, relegated to mostly tag matches and not a career direction in sight.

Out of nowhere, though, "Awesome Truth" was born, doling out havoc to the top guys on Raw. Granted, nobody bought the goofy tandem as threats, but there they were—two guys who made Raw simply too "dangerous" for the other wrestlers.

After a high-profile win against CM Punk and Triple H at Vengeance 2011—via interference from Kevin Nash—R-Truth and The Miz were unceremoniously quashed by The Rock and John Cena at Survivor Series 2011.

In the last month, The Miz has turned on his schizophrenic partner and put John Morrison out of his misery, who was clearly on his way out of the company, anyway.

Yet, it's going to take a lot more than that to gain the favor and trust of the WWE universe. How can we take someone seriously, who, for the life of him, cannot decisively vanquish his opponents where it counts—on pay-per-view?

Surely, the WWE can throw The Miz into the WWE title mix again—as soon as TLC 2011—but the fans will not accept him as a credible contender to the title throne.

That's not to say that only the company is at fault for The Miz's recent floundering. While the WWE writers are the main reason, the former reality star hasn't done himself any favors by rehashing the same, trite phrases week after week, for instance.

The great superstars of any era had a multitude of familiar saying at their disposal, whereas The Miz has only one recognizable line—"Because I am The Miz and I'm Awesome!"

After a while, what was once an intriguing catchphrase is eventually mistaken for hot air.

Furthermore, The Miz needs to spice up his in-ring style, which is the very definition of banal.

For example, one can get only so far ripping off Jeff Jarrett's finishing maneuver, "The Stroke," now dubbed the "Skull-Crushing Finale."

There is absolutely nothing the preppy prince of Cleveland does in the ring that any "Joe Schmoe" will mutter to himself, "Wow, that's impressive; there is no way I can do that!"

Undoubtedly, every memorable wrestling superstar of the past and present has had a distinctive personality not only on the microphone, but in the ring.

Unfortunately, The Miz is painfully pedestrian in the squared circle, relying on real athletes like Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, John Morrison, et al, to carry him to his best outings.

Consequently, as much as the WWE is to blame for his shortcomings, The Miz needs to also take the initiative to expand, vary and improve his portfolio to the point where he is as entertaining as he is versatile.

Although he won't win the WWE championship at TLC 2011, we'll be watching him make his case as a viable mainstay as opposed to a one-hit wonder.