WWE SummerSlam 2017: John Cena vs. Roman Reigns a Better Option
We could see Jinder Mahal vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam, but Roman Reigns may have been a better opponent.
It’s hard to dispute John Cena’s talent. Despite the boos that greet him when he comes down the ramp, the truth is the man bleeds charisma. His promo this Tuesday night on Current WWE Champion, Jinder Mahal, was nothing short of brilliant. Still, with the strong possibility of Cena vs. Mahal at SummerSlam we can’t help feeling that WWE is missing an opportunity. Roman Reigns will compete for the Universal Championship, but until recently, rumor had it that he would be the one to fight the Face that Runs the Place. That actually would’ve been a much better option.
First off, Cena will almost certainly win his 17th championship within the next months or year. He will solidify his place as one of the greatest of all time as he passes Rick Flair’s record. They can build a whole pay-per-view around this accolade, they could even build a whole WrestleMania around it. SummerSlam’s a big stage but Mahal just hasn’t solidified himself as a main event star, and it seems unlikely that this big event will involve him over a legend or future hall of famer. So in all likelihood, Cena will lose that match and Jinder will either retain or get taken out by Mr. Money in the Bank. Predictability isn’t a good look on the second biggest show of the year.
We also need to get Cena away from the tired old tales. He is a once-in-a-generation talent, but he is rather formulaic. Since coming back on July 4, his formula has been USA patriotism dialed up to an 11. At first, it was great, because if there’s anyone who can make even the most skeptical of us feel proud to be an American, it’s Cena. Then the holiday passed, we all went back to work, and the love faded. Cena cutting promos with Captain America levels of patriotism started to feel cheesy. It all culminated with an absolutely awful flag match against Rusev. Mahal vs. Cena could easily go down the same path, especially since they can’t seem to book Mahal out of “I’m from India.” This is going to become USA vs. India and no one needs to see that again.
Not only would Reigns vs. Cena avoided this issue altogether, it would give Reigns the chance to prove himself by breaking out of another one of Cena’s tropes. Every time one of his opponents wants to give him his due these days, they have one argument. You’re a part timer, you don’t care about this, you’re just a Hollywood guy and you should stay there. It was fun when the King of Shoot Style, the Miz, did it, but since then it’s played out.
Reigns could break this mold. His attitude recently has had a devil may care vibe to it, and he would be brilliant with an indifference to who Cena is. Imagine Reigns cutting a promo on Cena and telling him that he doesn’t want to talk about his movies, he didn’t see Cena’s movies, no one saw Cena’s movies. Reigns doesn’t care about Cena’s tour bus and he certainly doesn’t care about Total Bellas. In fact, Reigns would prefer not to talk at all, he likes his victories to speak for itself.
Reigns needs something that will break him out of his own formula. We’ve seen him against all three of the other men in his match a number of times. It doesn’t feel like there is much new to bring to that story. With Cena on the other hand, he can completely flip the script on what we expect from him. He may not have the gift of promos that Cena demonstrates but his tongue is plenty sharp. While Cena rants and raves for ten minutes at a time, Reigns employs a less is more approach. Their build up would be something to see.
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At SummerSlam itself, Reigns would have an opportunity to prove he can hang. The two have had strong enough matches in the past to suggest Reigns could have shined here and maybe even silence some of the doubters. Regardless, both men will be front and center at SummerSlam, but maybe it would’ve been a better move for them to stand across from each other in the ring.