WWE SmackDown 5 Takeaways: A Clash of High Stakes on the Horizon

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4. Dolph Ziggler Feels Out of Place in United States Championship Picture

The career of Dolph Ziggler has hit a crossroads in the current landscape of the WWE.  The Showoff has had a pretty decorated career in the WWE over the years, but it’s to the point now where he feels too much like an afterthought after all the times the WWE should have done something with him.

And Ziggler feeling like an afterthought on SmackDown only intensifies with his inclusion in a Triple Threat Match at Clash of Champions alongside Bobby Roode and the United States Champion Baron Corbin for the gold.  It seemed like Corbin vs. Roode was a sure-fire thing, but adding Ziggler in the mix feels out of place.

Last night’s SmackDown proved that and despite Ziggler getting the upper hand on both Corbin and Roode after he interrupted their match, it’s just hard to get invested in Ziggler anymore.  To no fault of his own, he feels out of place in a situation like this.

The Showoff has often been a go-to guy to help put over new talent, and he did a well enough job in doing that with Roode.  And maybe in the match at Clash of Champions, he could do the same with not only Roode, but Corbin as well.  That seems like it might be the only reason the WWE has him in the match to begin with.

Ziggler is one of the most talented performers the WWE has seen in years, but his career has taken a turn for the worst over the past several months and he feels out of place alongside two up and coming superstars on Tuesday nights.