WWE Survivor Series 2019: Roman Reigns’ road back to the top begins

At WWE Survivor Series 2019, Roman Reigns led Team SmackDown to a hard-fought victory, and this is where his journey back to the summit begins.

Few Superstars in WWE are as decorated as Roman Reigns, but it’s actually been rare for him to be a hero at Survivor Series. That all changed at WWE Survivor Series 2019, as the biggest acquisition in SmackDown’s history led FOX’s professional wrestling brand to a win in the 5-on-5 men’s elimination match against Raw and NXT.

Reigns stood tall as the Sole Survivor, adding another accolade to his lengthy list. The Big Dog has main evented WrestleManias, won the WWE and Universal Championships, beaten Brock Lesnar, and held both mid-card titles in his WWE career. But there’s something special about being the Sole Survivor. Reigns can now lay claim to this honor.

The timing of Reigns’ win matters more, though. Reigns hasn’t been in the World Title picture since returning from defeating leukemia. Reigns beat Drew McIntyre handily at WrestleMania 35, but it was his brother Seth Rollins who scored the bigger victory at the Show of Shows, defeating Brock Lesnar for Reigns’ old Universal Title to start the night.

Since WrestleMania, Reigns has been floating around in key storylines outside of the title picture, which has involved Rollins, Kofi Kingston, Brock Lesnar, Bray Wyatt, Kevin Owens, and other big names. Reigns, however, kept busy, moving on from a bizarre program with Shane McMahon to a more interesting one with Daniel Bryan and Rowan.

But Reigns has always been destined for something bigger. Survivor Series serves as the final Big Five Pay-Per-View before the lull leading up to Royal Rumble, when WrestleMania season kicks off. And now that Reigns is at 100%, he figures to have an important role in the build to WrestleMania as the face of the new-look SmackDown brand on FOX.

This victory as the Sole Survivor kickstarts all of that. Reigns will become a bigger part of SmackDown heading into the Royal Rumble, where he figures to be listed among the favorites. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Reigns, whose only critics at this point are fans stuck with their heads in the sand that muffles their irrelevant opinions, wins the Rumble. He could face Bray Wyatt, Seth Rollins, John Cena, or another big star in a World Title match at WrestleMania.

Before that, though, fans should enjoy the ride. Roman Reigns has reminded everyone that he is one of the best in the business at putting others over. He helped Buddy Murphy and Rowan look great during their program, and he gave Keith Lee a star-making moment at Survivor Series that will serve the future superstar well.

Reigns will continue to unselfishly help others on the WWE roster, using his platform as “The Guy” to help mold future stars, as he famously did with Braun Strowman. The Big Dog, however, needs to be in the world title programs and in the spotlight to keep helping others, and he’s simply too good to be out of the world title scene for long.

After being the show in the men’s Survivor Series match by outlasting two awesome performers in Rollins and Lee, Reigns is ready to assume his role as SmackDown’s most important male wrestler as he slowly builds momentum for a memorable 2020 WrestleMania season. Reigns is one of the best wrestlers in the world, and 2020 is about to be another huge year for him. Expect Reigns to pick up either the WWE or Universal Championship by WrestleMania 36 and at least one more notable accolade along the way.