Sending Samoa Joe From WWE Raw to SmackDown Was A Mistake

With Samoa Joe now on SmackDown Live, RAW has lost the only legitimate heel they had.

WWE‘s ‘Superstar Shakeup’ is now in our rearview mirror. The changes and pick-ups on RAW were pegged to be ‘underwhelming’ by fans. Perhaps one of the most notable switches came in the form of Bobby Roode. Despite Monday’s shortcomings, fans were in for a treat as far as the changes to SmackDown Live. One of the biggest names to jump ship came in the form of a certain former NXT Champion, Samoa Joe.

It’s completely understandable that the WWE is hoping to turn SmackDown Live into the wrestling super-show. After all, they have AJ Styles, Nakamura, Daniel Bryan, and the Miz on their roster. Joe will certainly fit in well here. However, bringing him over to the blue brand was a mistake.

During WrestleMania, the company made Braun Strowman look foolish. He may have won the tag team belts on his own (kind of), but the idea to make the WWE all-inclusive to kids by using someone who is a fantastic heel is silly. Since when did Braun become a big teddy bear? Bad booking is to blame here.

Monday is now lacking good, credible heels!

So, if Braun Strowman is not a heel and Lesnar is very part-time, who is left? The answer should be simple here. Samoa Joe! It’s questionable whether or not the company is going to pull the trigger on Roman completely. If they don’t, the only suitable opponents for Brock would be Braun or Joe, who has never really been able to showcase what talent they have.

In turn, Roman Reigns looked weak at the hands of Lesnar. Again, this serves as an issue. Sure, he might be able to take on the Beast Incarnate and win the Universal Championship soon enough. However, after he does, the only feud that makes any sense following that is with Samoa Joe. After all, they have had some unfinished business since Joe’s return. Both men bring out the best in one another’s promos, as showcased on RAW:

Joe is someone who the company can instantly push to the top of the card. His promo skills are great, and his wrestling is just as fantastic. Without him, one must wonder who else could even come close to Championship aside from Reigns, Lesnar, and Braun.

So with Samoa Joe gone, who could be pushed to the main event?

Sadly, there really is no wildcard here. Unfortunately, Seth Rollins and Finn Balor have cemented themselves in the mid-card. Even Bobby Roode is not a believable candidate after his terrible time with SmackDown. And, if Jinder Mahal is even thrown into the potential main-event category, RAW  will quickly lose viewers. We’ve already seen it happen once.

Next: Who Benefited The Most From The Superstar Shakeup?

I guess the best we can hope for is the creative team to begin building legitimate contenders. Then again, they haven’t done that yet.