Randy Orton Has Gone from Legend Killer to Future Talent Killer

In order for companies to excel long term, they must have a plan for the future. In the WWE's case, much of their future relies in their talent. Superstars like Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler, Wade Barrett, Sheamus, Zack Ryder and Daniel Bryan are the future of the company. The WWE has been in their version of a rebuilding phase and are trying to get as many young talent over as possible.

Randy Orton is one of the top superstars in the company today, and although he is only 31 years old, he is a veteran. Orton has reached the top of the company and is basically untouchable. He could become involved with the World Heavyweight title without any build up required.  

Lately, the WWE has moved Randy Orton away from the World Heavyweight Championship and put him in feuds with young talent. This is a good way to get young talent over and help make them stars. The only problem with that is Randy Orton continues winning the key matches that would put them over.

The reigning Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes has helped make the championship relevant again. Since Rhodes moved to Smackdown he has made the jump from being in Randy Orton's shadow and the legacy shadow, to becoming one of the top heels in the WWE. Cody Rhodes was riding some serious momentum when he entered his feud with Randy Orton.  

The feud and the I.C. belt were getting some serious attention, which is what was intended with Orton involved. The two caused many memorable moments in the process including a bloody extravaganza that caused the PG WWE to cut the program short so that they would not see a bloody Cody Rhodes. Rhodes could have beaten Orton in their final match, which could have put him in the main event discussion.  

Randy Orton beat Rhodes at Vengeance and also did not win the Intercontinental Championship, which could have at least made the title even more relevant around the waist of a top wrestler in the company. Orton failed to put Rhodes over and left him with no direction until his new feud with Booker T.

Wade Barrett has recently been on a tear and has rebounded with the same type of surge that he had when he was leading Nexus. This has led to a feud with Randy Orton. Barrett has been getting the best of Orton including his team beating Orton's team at Survivor Series.  

Last night at TLC was Barrett's chance to beat Randy Orton and potentially move into the World Heavyweight Championship picture, which has seen the same match for the last three pay-per-views. Orton however hit Barrett with a surprise RKO and once again failed to help a young superstar get over.  

Sure, just being in a feud with one of the top superstars like Randy Orton does help them become more popular and known but having them lose causes a feeling amongst the WWE universe that they are not able to hang with the top superstars.