WWE Superstar Shakeup 2017: Kevin Owens Should Have Stayed Put
The WWE missed a huge opportunity when it moved Kevin Owens to SmackDown.
The WWE Superstar Shake-Up was probably one of the best ideas that the company has had in the past year. What better way to keep fans interested post-WrestleMania than switching some of your top stars between brands?
This not only keeps fans interested in the product during what is typically a slower time of the year for WWE, but it also gives the opportunity for underutilized superstars to find a new niche on a new brand.
Sami Zayn, Rusev, The New Day and The Miz should all benefit from their moves. Overall, most of the superstar moves seemed well-thought out for the future. All of them, except one, at least.
The WWE Creative Team does an outstanding job putting out an entertaining product enjoyed by millions across the world. But sometimes they miss golden opportunities sitting right in front of them. Case in point: Kevin Owens.
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All the seeds were planted for an Owens-Samoa Joe-Triple H dominant heel faction. The Game handed Owens the Universal Title back in August, and Joe has been working as a henchman for Trips since his debut.
Even with KO dropping the belt, this trio could have had a number of memorable feuds on Raw. Who wouldn’t watch them go up against a Bullet Club team of Finn Balor, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson?
And we all know the WWE loves nostalgia. Dean Ambrose could have been brought to Raw after dropping the Intercontinental Title to Baron Corbin at WrestleMania. This way that title stayed on SmackDown, and the United States Title stayed on Raw.
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With that in place, a non-title-holding Ambrose on Raw could have teamed with his Shield buddies down the line to form a mega main event at SummerSlam. Either way, the possibilities were endless.
Before going any further, let me say this. It’s incredibly easy for me to sit here and make these grand booking predictions without any knowledge of the inner workings of the company.
Kevin Owens should enjoy a great run on SmackDown, as well. As United States champion now, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if he was in the main event scene by the end of the summer.
Owens to the blue brand opens up a world of opportunities for his character. And that is the entire point of the Superstar Shake-Up. But KO’s act really wasn’t stale on Raw at all. This just seemed like a move to switch the Intercontinental and U.S. Titles.
Let’s hope that Owens enjoys the same success on SmackDown as he has for the past eight months on Raw. If he can top his angle with Chris Jericho, maybe all of us will forget this entire missed opportunity in the first place.