WWE should ensure Buddy Murphy doesn’t remain “The Best Kept Secret”

Buddy Murphy has returned to being “The Best Kept Secret” on SmackDown once again, and it’s time that WWE finds a way to change that.

WWE has experienced a fair share of ups and downs throughout the Roman Reigns attacker storyline. Despite all the well-documented misfires though, they seem to have pulled through with a surprisingly solid storyline now.

Erick Rowan has all the makings of a real star right now, and Luke Harper’s return is a welcome development considering how entertaining he can be in the ring.

On the opposite side of the equation, Daniel Bryan has been nearly perfect as the scorned partner of Rowan. He hasn’t fully turned face, but has given just enough glimpses of humanity to make him a sympathetic character worthy of fans’ support.

At the same time, Roman Reigns has been his typical self by putting on a great match with Rowan at Clash of Champions, and just generally coming across like someone you wouldn’t want to mess with.

The only person who hasn’t seen some sort of benefit now that this storyline has come into full swing is Buddy Murphy. Murphy has been nonexistent on SmackDown following the loss to Ali which signified his quick exit from the King of the Ring tournament.

At the time, I had assumed that swift exit from the tournament was so that he could freely rejoin the ongoing Roman Reigns storyline, but that just hasn’t been the case. Aside from some social media activity, he’s pretty much been dropped from the angle entirely.

To me, that’s more than a little puzzling.

Murphy was on a massive run at the start of this story. He was generally having show-stealing bouts every week, with his win over Daniel Bryan appearing like the star-making moment he needed to solidify his spot on the roster.

Nevertheless, we haven’t seen Murphy in a match since his aforementioned bout with Ali on August 27th.

I realize that not every superstar can get consistent TV time, but this just seems borderline bizarre. It would have been incredibly easy to book Erick Rowan to take on Murphy in a one-on-one match due to Rowan’s role in roughing up Murphy backstage. Even if Murphy were to have lost then, he would at least likely have another great match on his record that helped keep his time in the spotlight rolling.

Besides that, why not have Murphy just move into another rivalry then if there wasn’t anything left for him in the Rowan and Reigns angle?

It would have been fairly simple for WWE to throw Murphy into the Intercontinental Championship picture considering his entertaining match with Ali, along with the high-profile nature of his other recent opponents.

Aleister Black also would have made sense as an opponent, as both superstars could then have used the TV time provided to really cement their characters.

Either way, it seemed like there were definitely options available for WWE to keep Buddy Murphy in a prominent role on SmackDown.

The good news is that those options remain available as well. While his role in the Reigns and Rowan angle will likely have to go down as a missed opportunity, unless he were to feud with Rowan after his rivalry with Reigns and Bryan ends I suppose, those other opportunities to spotlight the rising star of Buddy Murphy remain open for WWE to use in the coming weeks.

With that in mind, I think it’s about time WWE drops that “Best Kept Secret” moniker for Murphy. It’s time they ensure that wrestling fans everywhere realize how great Buddy Murphy is.